True Advent

I have savored Advent more this year than any other. My wife and I have been in the process of adopting three wonderful children from Ghana since early 2009. Here we are, 9 months into the process, and we are in the final steps to travel and complete the adoption. Talk about birth pains!

It has been an exciting time for the church. In some respect, since we announced that we would be adopting, the congregation has watched and waited with us. Almost every time I see someone from the church, they ask if we have any news. The congregation is pregnant with anticipation.

Advent is meant to be this way - we should be pregnant with anticipation of the Savior's birth. The world tells us that we should sing our Christmas carols before Thanksgiving, give gifts, and attend gatherings with family and friends...but the time of the church says, "NOT YET!" The longer we wait, and the longer we watch, the more sweet the outcome.

We may be anticipating these children with all our hearts. In fact, we may want to rush it so much that we miss God's timing. Likewise, we may very well miss the birth of the Christ child - the object of this entire season - because we get ahead of ourselves. Even now, two days before Christmas, may we "put on the brakes" enough to experience a true Advent.

When Church Is Church

I've been thinking about the early church in Acts as a model for ministry. There were so many things that the early church did that get me pumped about being the body of Christ for the world. When I read about the early church in Acts 2, it's imperfect, at best, but it is also a blessed communion.

Here are things that I see: breaking bread in homes, gathering regularly for worship, taking care of any in need, having the Scriptures explained, sharing faith...many of these are things that I see alive and well in the church. There are many more that are still in process; but that's a lot like the faith journey.

The early church wasn't a building - it was church. The church is the body, being the hands and feet of Christ. We do that when everyone is sure about the mission of the church. We do that when we gather for worship - whether on Sunday mornings, Wednesday nights, or any other time of the week ("Wherever two or three are gathered in my name..."). We do that when we gather in small groups for study and fellowship. We do that when we cook and serve meals at the homeless shelter. We do that when we show radical hospitality at a pumpkin patch (which is much more important than the money we raise). We do that whenever we serve "the least of these." And yet, we are still in process. The church is being church, imperfect, but still being made perfect in love.

Audio Sermons Online

I have been thinking, for some time, about the pros and cons of having audio recordings of sermons available online. There are a number of churches that do so; certainly, there are a number of my younger colleagues who put their sermons online on a weekly basis. I really wrestle with the ecclesiology behind it.

Here are some pros that I've thought of: For people who are out of town or unable to attend worship (for a variety of reasons), they can listen to the sermon. They have an opportunity to learn (as those did who participated in worship), and also have a chance to experience some connection to their faith community, whether or not they have direct interaction with the body of Christ. For practical purposes, it provides an archive of the pastor's sermons. For those visiting a church's website, it gives them a chance to preview what worship may be like before they attend the first time. All of these are positives.

At the same time, I think that there are some negatives. How actively can you be engaged in the body of Christ if you stay home and listen online? What spiritual, emotional, or physical affect does it have on you? Does it encourage people to be passive listeners instead of active participants? Does it encourage people to practice an individualistic faith, rather than a corporate faith? For practical purposes, congregations like mine would have to invest in more recording equipment, and invest time in putting the files on the church website.

What's best? I honestly don't know. With the pros and cons to the issue, I haven't come to a decision - but I do lean more toward not putting sermons online. Can we truly be the body of Christ if we're not gathered as the body? If we exist to introduce persons to Jesus, build one another up in love and accountability, and to praise God, can we do this on our own?

As usual, I offer more questions than answers, but perhaps we should wrestle with the overarching questions. After all, online sound bytes isn't the core issue - what it means to be the church is....

Water Waves

Having spent the last 8 days in the Pacific, I've spent a lot of time around water. There have been a couple of days with mist or light rain, but it was quickly passing. Our house on the oceanfront has a stone wall separating us from the beach. We have to climb down a ladder and onto stone steps in order to get onto the beach and into the water.

I am a wave-watcher. I love to sit and look at the waves, and see what the ebb and flow is like. I sat on the stone steps one day this week, with my toes touching the water. Some of the waves came in gently. Others came in regular rolls. Some crashed in and took my by surprise as my legs and/or arms got wet. Water has so much power to form.

I sat looking at those rocks, and thought about their shape. They weren't always that way. For many years, those water waves have come, lapping at the edges, crashing against and over, reshaping and reforming the rock into new creation.

That's the beauty of the gray area of God's grace. It may come in mist, a downpour, a gentle wave, or a crash. But no matter the form, it is relentless. It pursues us, seeking to shape us and mold us into new creations ourselves. And, like those waves crashing over the rocks, even if we tried to get away from those waves of grace, we cannot. God's love is so infinite, so all-encompassing, that we will eventually be overcome by the sheer beauty and power of God's grace.

Holy Conferencing

Having just returned from our Annual Conference session, I am energized. I love the texture that comes to conversation and leadership when others are brought to the table. Each year, there are new pastors, new laypersons; and this year, a new bishop. There were many fruitful conversations throughout the four days of conferencing.

And yet, I wonder who we missed at the table. Our conference voted down the majority of constitutional amendments giving equal voices to those in central conferences, women and other minorities. Is it truly holy conferencing if we pick and choose who comes to the table ourselves, rather than remembering that it is Jesus who is the gracious host?

Some Pharisees and scribes once said of Jesus, "he sits and dines with sinners." The reality is that all of us are sinners and are invited to the table. All of us need God's grace, mercy, and forgiveness. When we exclude others from the table, do we deny them the opportunity to share in God's grace?

Perhaps we should remove the log from our own eye first, rather than focusing on the splinter in others'. We are all perpetual sinners moving on toward perfect love of God and neighbor. Maybe we would move closer toward perfection if we all gathered at the table together. Maybe then we would truly find the Spirit in our midst, and truly have holy conferencing.

Relationships

The longer I practice ministry, the more I realize the importance of relationships. I myself have never been good at relationships. With the advent of information technology, though, I'm better at staying in contact through e-mail, Facebook, MySpace, blogging, Twitter, and Skype.

Relationships are tricky. They require investment of time and energy. With a shaky economy, it's not out of line for us to be wary of investments. Many of us don't like to give up time or energy...but they are extremely important to cultivate life-giving, healthy relationships.

Jesus said that he was the vine, and that we are the branches. We are meant to abide in him. I wonder, sometimes, if we're afraid to make the investment of time and energy in our relationship with Jesus. If it's going to cost us, is the investment too risky?

Jesus risked much more for each of us. Jesus' life was his investment in us. We should be asking ourselves if the benefits outweigh the costs, and I think they certainly do!

Ask yourself today: How am I abiding in God? It's a relationship worth investing in!

The Snowball Effect

I'm sitting in my office, having just finished my sermon for Maundy Thursday (it's that day, after all!). I keep discovering more and more things that need to be done this week. Having served as a staff person or associate pastor for almost all of my ministry, this is the first Holy Week I'm experiencing on my own. Let me tell you, there's a lot to be done. I'm sad, but also grateful, that we're not having a Good Friday service. It is a mixed blessing.

I have discovered, as I've journeyed this Holy Week, that it has a snowball effect. Each day moves faster and faster, with more to do. It's like the snowball that begins to roll down the mountain, and as it goes, it gains speed, momentum, and size. Suddenly, before you know it, it's overtaken you, and there's nothing you can do about it!

As I've prayed through this week, I think Holy Week had a snowball effect for Jesus. He had so much to accomplish, so much to teach, and the desire to do it all before the events of Holy Thursday and Good Friday kept him moving forward. Jesus wouldn't let anything stand in the way of him fulfilling God's mission for him.

If Christians could just be so bold as to live through the snowball effect - to gain that momentum, size, and speed as we hurtle toward the goal of Jesus Christ. If we could just be that clear about God's mission for us - there would be no stopping us! May you hurtle toward the cross this Holy Week!

The Fine Line

Reconditioning a church isn't easy work. I've been in ministry (pastoral or otherwise) for 12 years now, and I long ago realized the difficulty in helping people grasp the church's mission. Just this week, we were in conversation about a ministry opportunity that's available to my congregation. We certainly felt that it was ministry that reflected the mission and God's vision for our church, but how to present it to our congregation was the question.

We're getting clear that we need to rediscover our Wesleyan DNA as United Methodists - living out the Great Commandment and Great Commission through acts of piety and mercy. And, we feel that every person who is a part of the church should be striving to grow in their love of God and their neighbors...but there is a fine line between holding persons accountable to their growth, and judging them for a lack of fruit. How do we teach people the importance of moving forward on their journey with God, but not push them too far too fast? The answer is not easy.

How are we handling it in this particular situation? We've decided to present the ministry opportunity to the small groups in our church, and invite them to discern if God is calling their group to intentionally participate in this ministry. Then, we'll open it up to the entire congregation to participate if they so choose. This way, we're using groups as a vehicle to hold the church accountable to participate in the ministry, but we're not judging individuals who choose to participate only for a short time, or not at all. Yet, we will continue to keep the ministry in front of the congregation, with gentle reminders that persons can become involved.

Inclusion and embrace of all - whether or not we see the fruit of the life of faith, is important. Perhaps our best accountability is to provide opportunities to experience God's grace. We can offer acts of piety and mercy, and encourage persons to participate for their own personal growth and development. Ultimately, though, as we embrace someone as a brother or sister in Christ, we also embrace their free will. And, although we may not agree with a person's choices, we still need to make space for God to work on that person, while gently encouraging them. That's the divine dance of judgment, accountability, and God's scandalous grace.

Learning to see gray

It's been a long time since I've blogged!!! Wow!!!

This past fall, I attended a continuing education event at my alma mater. One of the key speakers was Adam Hamilton, senior pastor at the United Methodist Church of the Ressurection in Leawood, Kansas. Adam recently published a book about learning to see gray in a black and white world.

It seems to me that Hamilton is reaching back to our Wesleyan roots. In the Church of England, the via media, or middle way, was the goal - finding their way between Catholic and Reformation theology. This church, in which Wesley was a priest, points to a way that the church can move forward. Our world is becoming increasingly polarized - with constant pressure to make decisions in one camp or the other. The church has a unique opportunity to speak out and say that life is not black and white, but full of shades of gray.

As Christians, we need to learn how to see gray. Not many things are so clear-cut that we can see them in black or white. Although we would sometimes like to (especially when our pet issue comes to the forefront - whether it's homosexuality, abortion, homelessness, etc.), our faith teaches us to see gray. Jesus, in his interactions with people, was not so black or white (like Pharisees), but saw people in gray hues.

In our Wesleyan/Methodist heritage, we have the tools to see gray in a black-and-white world. The Wesleyan quadrilateral asks us to discern God's will by considering our experience, using our reason/intellect, revisiting the tradition/history of the church, and holding those findings up to a search of Scripture. These tools provide creative tension in discerning God's will - and they allow us to experience the hues of the color spectrum. Wrestling with the issues - bringing it all to the middle, allows us to live our faith in the tension of love...which embraces the ancient church, while pointing us to God's future.