Church Things

My disclaimer for the following post (shamelessly borrowed from a fellow UM clergy): my blog, my rant.

In our attempt to raise John Wesley on a pedestal of perfection, even the best of us armchair and formally-educated Wesleyan theologians forget that Wesley was a rule breaker who formed a movement that would become it's own denomination in the midst of opposition and persecution by the Church of England. Yes, John Wesley, more so than his brother Charles, was a rule breaker who challenged the church structure of his day in order to birth a movement that invited people to a Christianity that was less rigid and more relevant in lives of people. And yet today, all too often, in our amnesia of our own church history, its founder, and the earliest Methodists, we implement a very rigid and stifling church structure that if challenged meets the reprimand of misconduct to the point of being accused of completely undermining the operation and mission of the entire church--not entirely dissimilar from the accusations Wesley met from the powers-that-be in the 18th century church hierarchy. As Mark Twain wrote, "The past doesn't always repeat itself, but it often rhymes."

Today the church does a whole lot of talking. We do a lot of talking about the need to do something, change something, be something, and yet from what I have seen the ever elusive something that we all hope will revive our church is something implemented from the top down; an ecclesiological trickle down theory, if you will. An agenda articulated from the top down instead of bottom up does not bode well for our future as a denomination. Just as there is really no such thing as trickle down economics, there is no such thing as trickle down implementation of change for the church today. If we want to see change, it must be at the grass roots level, or in church lingo--at the local church level where ideas can be birthed such as those that the "Bible Moths" of Oxford birthed in the 18th century. The local church level--clergy and laity--should be the driving force of articulating change instead of being micro-managed by the top-tier administration lest we forget that the Methodist movement was largely a lay-driven movement. However any student of John Wesley will admit that he came to be a little rigidly structured over time as the Methodist movement grew--hence the name our denomination now bears.

But the early years of the Methodist movement was a defiant movement in face of the church status quo--for which Wesley was admonished. But admonishments did not deter Wesley from pressing forward, from dreaming God-size dreams without first getting permission from those who held positions of power within the church. Spiritual awakenings and revolutions are not planned happenings, but they burst forth, challenge the status quo and shake things up.

The world, not only the church, is in need of a spiritual awakening today. I heard one pastor say to me just the other day, "The definition of insane is doing the same thing over and over with the expectation of different results." We have a lot of insanity in our church today. Everyone knows something has to change, and there are a lot of opinions about what that something is or should be. It has been my experience that there is a lot of desire to micro-manage and control from those at the top, not allowing creativity to be birthed in and among the people who day in and day out serve and worship within their community's context--our mission field of where we hope disciples are being made. John Wesley got away with preaching and teaching wherever he wanted by declaring "the world is my parish." I have a feeling that credentials would be stripped and churches reprimanded if such "enthusiasm" was expressed today; it probably violates some paragraph in the Book of Discipline which would of course be a chargeable offense.

That brings me to another point of critique: we Methodists are no longer people of one book as Wesley was, but we are people of two books--the Bible and the Book of Discipline. What was it that Twain wrote, "History doesn't alway repeat itself, but it often rhymes"? There is so much fear and concern for the future of our church today. I would argue that if we get back to being a people of one book, back to being a movement and less of a rigid institution that maybe we would see some positive change that would change the trajectory of our dying church and our mission to make disciples for the transformation of the world. But until some of those at the top get off their high horse and relinquish power and pride then nothing within this dying institution will change. But then maybe such an institution isn't even worth saving. Maybe we need to birth a movement--a spiritual awakening, a revival, a revolution that works outside the bounds of appropriate church structure and polity in order that the kingdom of God is grown. It worked for Wesley...maybe this part of our past we inherit as today's Methodists should repeat.

Ministers of the Social Club

Last week I met with a lady to talk about how our church could help a growing problem in Columbia. The problem and solution seem actually quite simple if we could get people to give a little time, space and energy to it. This is the problem: there are many single parents who become homeless or lose their children because they can only take jobs when childcare is provided. Most childcare centers are open from 7:30pm-5:30pm. That is great for the average working mother, but what about the earlier and later shifts; those jobs starting at 6:00am and ending at 9:00pm? How are single parents supposed to find work when they are limited, due to the operating hours of childcare facilities, by the work they are able to take? The lady I spoke with owns an adult career development center for lower income families. She said that several of her clients have to turn down jobs because of the childcare problem. In our conversation, she lamented some ministers of the past who used to be quite boisterous in advocating for such issues on behalf of children are no longer living. She lamented the days when some of Columbia's great ministers cared about what happened beyond their immediate church congregation. She said there were days in the past when the communities of faith in Columbia, led by their pastors, where a loud, respected and listened-to voice on such issues. But now, she said, few of them are left. I wasn't around for those days, but of the people she told me about, I hope I can learn to walk in their shoes in being a leader not only at my church but in the community. But I felt convicted because I know she is right; we like to play it safe--especially in the age of church decline.

But if ministers really were doing their jobs well, myself included, I don't think blossoming non-profits like Family Promise of the Midlands would be having such a hard time trying to find churches to sign on to host 14 people one-week every quarter. I also think a minister would be saying something about the mental health--or lack there of--care for people who need it but can't afford it. Surely a minister would have stepped up by now to question our government in cutting education funds in our state. By now a minister would have spoken out about so many other issues that might not directly pertain and effect our churches, but are concerns of the faith community and the community at large. But instead I see ministers of outreach at some churches posting how many shoes they keep in their closet while children in our very community--probably their very church--don't have a single pair of shoes except for the ones they are wearing but outgrew last year.

If we want to start making disciples, we, the ministers and those who call ourselves Christian, must begin living discipleship beyond church on Sunday. In an article by Richard Heitzenrater, "Take Thou Authority: Ministerial Leadership in the Wesleyan Heritage," that looks at John Wesley's 1756 "An Address to the Clergy," Heitzenrater writes, "The obvious foil to the matter of pure intentions to glorify God and save souls, is the desire for worldly gain." I do believe we have Methodist ministers in our ranks who have abdicated their Biblical ministerial role for a more passive leadership role that seeks to be both in and of the world so as not to ruffle the feathers of church goers. Such soft leadership does not teach our church what a disciple of Christ looks like in the here and now. Rather such leadership accommodates the way of the world at the expense of domesticating the way of Christ. Such hypocritical leadership is not leading the people in our pews to be "altogether Christians." But then how can we make "altogether Christians" if we, ourselves, the leaders of the church, are being merely nominal or almost Christians?

We sit and complain about church decline, but as one of my members reminded me last night at bible study in the words of Jesus, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few." Church decline is not a harvest problem; it is a laborer problem. The problem lies with us. Where are those greats that I was told about--those ministers that boldly stood up as the voice of Jesus in our community and government? When we recover that courageous voice--whose concern extends beyond our own comfort and our own flock--then maybe we'll begin to leave behind the era of the social club and start really being the church, the "ecclesia" we are called out to be by our Creator.

Community Tragedy

The news is filled with tragedy. Such tragedies as the senseless killing of Kelly Hunnewell, a baker and mother of four children ages 6-13, are far too common in our news today. Not to mention people's weigh-ins on such tragedies via Facebook, Twitter and other forms of social media. Upon the arrest of two 18 year-olds and a 16 year-old in the killing of Kelly Hunnewell, several South Carolinians commented with posts and tweets like, "Good. I hope they get the death sentence. Don't want my tax-payer dollars keeping them alive," "No sympathy for the murders, no matter how young they are" "The 16 year-old acted like an adult, let him be tried like an adult," and I could go on and on with like comments, posts and tweets that had the three convicted before any formal trial. My initial reaction when I read that three boys not even out of their teens had been arrested was, "How did they get there? How did they come to be murderers?" I can't imagine that someone wakes up one day thinking today is a good day to murder someone. Yes, there are exceptions to the rule, and so there are probably people who crave to kill. I am a Dexter aficionado after all. But for the most part, I think it can be argued that most people do not wake up suddenly desiring to murder. The boys arrested are said to have "long criminal records;" they were not made murders in one day, but had a history that all who read might surmise that such a history of violence and crime would lead to murder. At what point did a parent, a friend, a teacher, a coach, a pastor, a fellow church member, someone in their life speak a hard-to-hear-truth, a reality-check that could have changed their future criminal trajectory? Where in their past did it all go wrong? 

I by no means think they shouldn't receive the consequences befitting of their crime. I am not trying to blame anyone else in this horrible act of senseless murder; they are responsible for their actions. At 16 and 18 years-old people ought to know the difference between right and wrong, and therefore they must be tried and punished for their crime. But I do, upon reading stories of such relatively young people committing heinous acts of violence, wonder how could have their community been their for them? Maybe you're thinking, "It's none of my business. It's the parents job to raise their kids." Yes, it is, but not all of us have been born into equally loving, giving, disciplining families who teach and model for us right. The world is not fair, and that is a fact of life. Some people are born where both nature and nurture are working against them. 

On craigslist there is a section called "Missed Connections" where you can, upon briefly having met someone, put out an ad searching for the person whom you briefly made a connection. We daily have many missed connections, missed opportunities to say and do something that could have made a difference. Not too long ago, I had a friend who I used to run and ride bikes with who committed suicide. A few weeks before she took her life, I noticed she was very down, and then a couple days before she died, I felt like I should call her and ask her to go to for a run or a bike, but I didn't. I was too busy with me that I didn't want to take the time to go see her. I don't know if my call or invitation to run or ride would have made a difference, but I will always wonder, "What if..." 

I don't like the "What if's" of life. At the root of "what if" is regret, and regret is often irreversible and can weigh heavy on the heart and mind for years. What if I had said something, she would still be here. What if I had done something, he wouldn't have gotten hurt. What if I had talked to him, maybe he wouldn't have done that. What if I had showed love to her when she needed it, maybe she wouldn't have gone off the deep end. What if I chose to forgive, maybe they would made a different decision. I would bet that we all come into contact with friends, acquaintances, or strangers whom we know we should say something--something that could make a difference. Too often with such "missed connections" there is no going back; once missed, it is simply a missed opportunity that we cannot use craigslist or a time machine to change. But we can learn from these "missed connections," not letting such important connections slip by so easily. 

We live in a very over-individualistic culture where we keep to ourselves and expect others to do the same. "It's none of their business" or similar variations is the standard mantra of the day for keeping relationships in the shallow end. How dare you try to interfere in my personal life! No one wants that, right? I bet right about now as those three teenage boys are sitting in their cell, they're probably wishing someone had been there for them to speak a hard-to-hear lesson that invaded their personal lives, but didn't lead them down the road to spending the rest of their lives in an orange jumpsuit. I also think there are people in their lives going through the "What if" questions, retracing missed connections that led up to their violent crime. 

From the newspaper and such stories as the murder of Kelly Hunnewell, it's evident that our world is plagued by needless violence and senseless crime. But what are you doing about it? Perhaps you are not contributing to the violence and crime. Good for you. But by not doing anything to add to the violence, by keeping silent, are you working to bring about a safer, less violent and crime riddled world? I think Christ calls us to be more proactive than just not being like "them." Jesus tells a story in Luke 18, "The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax-collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.” But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!”

Letter to the Editor

Today The State paper, the daily statewide distributed newspaper in South Carolina, ran an article titled, "Are the Homeless Hurting Columbia's Downtown Businesses?"The article from title to content appalled me. When I was a child and my mother told me to go clean my room, most of the time I admittedly stuffed everything in my closet or under my bed, giving the perception upon first glance that I had cleaned my room. To me, it sounds like downtown businesses want to sweep a very real problem that has to do with living, breathing human beings under the rug, giving the perception that Columbia does not have a homeless problem. We do have a homeless problem; it is a problem that the city and it's citizens have failed to successfully address at the root of the issue which goes beyond providing food, shelter and clothing. While such programs are good and meet basic needs, somewhere we are not working together to effectively put into place preventative programs that help people not get to the point of homelessness. Homelessness is a community problem that we should be concerned with not just for the sake of protecting businesses or out of self-interest, but we should have a genuine concern for and desire to help our fellow human beings, beginning by investing in education, mental health services, financial counseling and other proactive services that help people before they find themselves and their children on the street. I suggest the downtown businesses put their heads together on ways they can help the people at the heart of their issue rather than simply complaining and disregarding the homeless problem in Columbia as someone else's problem. If you aren't a part of a real, sustainable solution then you're only perpetuating the problem. People's lives are at stake, and I'm not talking about the life and livelihood of the business owners. The homeless problem in Columbia is greater than an annoyance or eyesore for downtown shoppers. When we begin to see the homeless problem as much as our problem as those who are experiencing homelessness, then maybe we will more than put a bandaid over a problem that a bandaid cannot fix or hide. 

Sunday Musings: Mark 4:35-41

How many of us at WMUMC--or as members of other slowly declining churches--haven't asked God, "God, don't you care that we are perishing?!" As many of us have watched WMUMC decline over the past 30 or so years, don't you ever wonder what makes some churches decline and others grow? It can be a frustrating rabbit trail to trace; I chase it almost every day as I pray, think an plan the ministries of our church. I've only been at WMUMC for 3 years, and even I--after all the hard work I know we've all done together to be the hands and feet of Christ, hoping to help our church grow--I ask like the disciples did on that boat with Jesus, "Jesus, don't you care that we are perishing?!" Sometimes it feels like Jesus is asleep in the back as we pray and work so hard to help our once vibrant church find a rhythm of growth again. But something struck me as I read Mark 4:35-41: if my question is, "Jesus, don't you care that we are perish in," then I have to assume Jesus' follow-up question for me is, "Jeri Katherine, what are you afraid of? Have you no faith?" We small-member churches must remember if we ask, "Jesus, don't you care that we are perishing," then we must also be ready to truthfully answer, "What are we afraid of? Have we no faith?" I think that is a good place to begin a church-wide conversation because fear too often paralyzes. When we are afraid, we forget how significant a role fear plays into our decision making, into how we be and do church together. I want to believe that if we, as a church, can openly name our fears then together we can move from fear to faith that God is in our very presence, working, moving, breathing life into places fear prevents us from ever noticing the work of our living God. Fear gripped the disciples in the middle of the storm. We have endured some stormy years, Wesley Memorial, and I believe fear has paralyzed many who sit in our pews. Many of us want our question for Jesus answered, but we refuse to answer Jesus' question for us. I believe it is answering Jesus' question that our question will become moot. So, church, Jesus asks us, "What are YOU afraid of? Have you no faith?" 

Bahamas Recap

Common Ground: Following an Uncommon Man

Preparing for Sunday: John 1:1-18

This is where it's at! Join us!

Every Sunday in our bulletin there is a section that let's everyone know what the scripture text and sermon will be for the next four weeks. This is not merely for my benefit, nor merely the benefit of the worship team and our musicians who plan our services ahead of time. My hope is that people will do a little reading before worship, start thinking, maybe even do a little reading about the scripture text on their own time, so that they don't come into Sunday morning worship cold, but warmed up and ready to engage the text on a deeper level. 

Before every workout or race, I have my runners warm up by running a few easy miles, doing agility drills, strides and stretching, so that they won't get hurt when they start trying to run the fast stuff. This same principle can and should be applied to warm ups before Sunday worship. You really can't expect to fully grow as a disciple or fully engage Sunday worship, or get all you can out of worship without some preparation and warming up on your own time. 

So with that in mind I wrote the following to get folks thinking about this Sunday, June 9:

After 22 weeks in the Old Testament, we are in the New Testament, and we will be reading John 1:1-18. In the middle of the scripture lesson John writes: "Jesus was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not recognize him." For 400 years after the prophet Malachi prophesied Jesus' coming, there was silence--no visions, no prophecies, no messenger from God. Then the Word became fleshed; the long awaited messiah came to dwell among us. But we learn from John that those who waited the promised Messiah didn't even recognize him when he came!

In the movie October Sky, Homer Hickam gets to travel from West Virginia to Indiana for the National Science Fair. Homer and the Rocket Boys win first prize, and in a flurry of congratulations, Homer's hero, the rocket developer for NASA, Werner Von Braun, shakes Homer's hand, but Homer didn't even know who's hand he shook until a reporter asked Homer, "What did Von Braun say to you?" Later Homer's dad said, "I heard you met your hero, and you didn't even know who he was." 

"Jesus came into the world...yet his own people did not recognize him." How do we miss Jesus in our midst? How do we make sure the world does not miss Jesus alive and working in the world today?

Sunday Worship with WMUMC

2501 Heyward Street, Cola., SC

9:50am (contemporary) and 11:00am (traditional)

Scripture: John 1:1-18

Sermon: "Incognito Jesus"

See you there!

Training to Fast

A great read even if you don't choose to fast.

Most of my friends who read the title of this blog post might think I forgot a verb. For years I trained "to go" fast, as in "to run" fast, or at least to run faster than previous times. But this week I am in training to fast which is more about slowing down rather than speeding up. I'm preparing or doing a week of spiritual warm ups and training, if you will, to get ready for a 21-day fast, beginning on Monday, June 10. I have never fasted. My parents fasted periodically when I was a child, and churches where I was a member growing up did church-wide fasts, but I never participated. I didn't think I could fast because of the physical demands I daily asked of my body. At one point in my life I needed nearly 4000 calories to keep up with the energy I was burning during training. Training plus the blessing of inheriting my dad's super high metabolism was hard to keep up with growing up. I'm certainly not as fast as I once was, nor does the training I do require 4000 calories and my metabolism has probably seen its peak, but I still try to keep a pretty routine and rigorous fitness regimen for someone ever nearing the 30 year-old milestone of life and all while working more and sleeping less. Running was once a god that consumed my every waking breath, thought, food choice and other decisions. At times such living could be a neurotic way of life that bordered or crossed over into idolatry. I am happy to say that is a life of the past that no longer consumes my whole being in such an idolatrous, all-consuming way. I don't have time for such devotion even if I did want to continue such a life! Though I still like to compete from time to time, it is less the focus of my running and staying in shape. Running--and even competing--has become therapeutic, an escape, or a time to unplug and zone out or spend miles in silence and solitude in the wee early morning hours talking and listening to God. I am a person who needs movement and one who needs to be challenged, and so running, in ways, feeds my soul.

But recently I have hungered to feed my soul in a way I believe the ancient spiritual discipline of fasting will do. I was reminded in The Daniel Fast by Susan Gregory (the book walking me through my first fast) that almost every leader in the bible fasted; look up some of these examples for yourself: Moses--Exodus 34:28, Elijah--1 Kings 19:8, Ezra--Ezra 10:6, Daniel--10:3, Esther--Esther 4:16, Anna--Luke 2:37, Jesus--Luke 4:1-2, Paul--2 Cor. 11:27, Cornelius--Acts 10:30. Their fasts were connected to a spiritual issue; they restricted food for a spiritual purpose, not as a way to diet. There is a difference in dieting and fasting; fasting is, as Gregory points out, "is to draw closer to God...it is an intentional choice to 'turn down the noise of the world' and focus on your relationship with your Father." The Daniel Fast is a partial fast. I won't just be drinking water and eating bread. Rather Daniel's Fast is based on Daniel 1 and 10 when Daniel--in the face of an oppressive king when Daniel was determined to remain faithful to God--"ate no pleasant food, no meat or wine came into [his] mouth, nor did [he] anoint [himself] at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled." It is a biblically-based fast that is entirely plant based with only water to drink. I think my morning cup of Joe is going to be one of the hardest to give up, but I am determined during this time of fasting to stick with the Daniel fast plan to help me grow in God, or rather the best way to say it is to allow God to grow in me as I pray about how to lead our church in this day and age, so that like Daniel, I can live faithfully even when all those around me

Back in the day.

seem to be abandoning God for other man-made gods.

I am intentionally beginning the fast on the first full day of the SC Annual Conference when church leaders--both clergy and laity--gather in holy conferencing to worship, fellowship, learn and talk about the ways we can make disciples for the transformation of this world. Gregory encourages those who participate in the Daniel fast to "identify the top three or four issues in your life that cause you stress or concern. Ask yourself, 'If I could change three things about my life, what would they be?'" At the heart of this question, for me, is the United Methodist Church--both locally and globally--and how we can grow to be a vibrant and relevant church again in the lives of people every where. My four-fold focus this fast will be for the 1) SC United Methodist leadership, 2) the people and leaders of SC, 3) what is my role, as a minister and constituent of this state, in embodying and preaching the Good News in SC, 4) how can God move through the people of Wesley Memorial to better minister in our context. My prayer is that I will grow as a leader, so that I have a better discernment of where and how God wants to use me to further his kingdom--especially within the conference and church I am currently serving for the next year. So here it goes...a 21-day journey in the fast lane :)

It's Time to Rebuild

Haggai 1:4-7 Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?”Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways.  You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways.”

On our college mission trip to Eleuthera in the Bahamas, I learned that the church there struggles with keeping young people connected to the church family in the very same way many UM churches struggle with absent younger generations here in South Carolina. A 29-year-old staff member of Bahamas Methodist Habitat said to me when I asked if he went to church, “No. Not regularly. Church has become like watered down kool aid, and you know everyone hates watered down kool aid.” I agree; who does like watered down kool aid, or Gatorade or lemon or any such beverage? It certainly doesn’t make you want to take another sip. Another person said to me, “It’s like the church started out with a great hamburger piled high with all the toppings, but over time we’ve parsed out the meat, the lettuce, the tomato, the cheese, so all we have is a bun with no substance between. When we bite, it’s empty; it’s all fluff.” I agree; you can’t call a bun a hamburger because without the meat (or blackbean burgers as I eat), or lettuce, tomato, cheese, onions, ketchup or mustard it’s not really a hamburger in the full understanding or expectation of what a hamburger is supposed to be. It’s merely simple carbs, or “fluff” that has no sustaining substance.

These sentiments were shared by many of the young Bahamian 20 somethings—though few gave such colorful illustrations.  “Watered down kool aid” or the hamburger analogy might not be the illustrations I would use to describe the plight of churches today in relationship with younger generations, but they express a sentiment shared by too many people under the age of 30. Statistics prove these feelings are more than just the thoughts of a few. The Pew Research Center says 1 in 5 have absolutely no religious affiliation. Only 1 in 5 people under the age of 30 attend church regularly (and the poll’s “regularly” is once a month). 3 out of 5 people disconnect from the church after age 15. 47% of people don’t believe that God exists. Such statistics along with conversations I’ve had not only with Bahamian once-upon-a-time church goers under 30, but conversations I’ve had with people right here in Columbia worry me not only about the future of our church, but worry me that we are not doing a good job of being Christ to the world. Every time we celebrate communion, as my church did this past first Sunday of the month, don’t we say, “Make [the gifts of bread and wine] be for us the body and blood of Christ, that we may be for the world the body of Christ, redeemed by his blood,” or “By your Spirit make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world”? I’m reading The Daniel Fast by Susan Gregory, and she writes very early in the book, “As pressures of the present-day world increase, today’s followers of Jesus Christ are seeking a deeper, more meaningful relationship with their Lord. They want a faith that goes beyond Sundaymorning. They want their faith to make a difference in their families, their jobs, their everyday surroundings.” In other words, we’re called as people of God to be more than “Sunday Christians” or what John Wesley called “Almost Christians” and even “Honest Heathens.”

Our mission is not to merely get “butts in pews,” as a former leader in my own congregation once said to me. Our mission asGod’s holy church—Christ’s body—is to make disciples for the transformation of the world, or as Susan Gregory put it embodying a “faith that goes beyond Sunday.” The under 30 crowd doesn’t want to be a part of a church that merely wants them to be present to be merely a number in the pew. They want to be part of a church that is going to be relevant, that is going to challenge them to be a disciple, not only on Sunday, but an everyday disciple that strives—together with their church—to embody the Good News of Christ for a world that is in desperate need of such lifesaving Good News. The under 30 crowd wants to be a part of a people who come together to change the world, not merely serve themselves and their kind. Sunday doesn’t exist for Sunday’s sake alone; Sunday exists that we may be nurtured, strengthened and empowered to make Sunday every day.

God’s house is in need of rebuilding, and I’m not talking about the physical buildings in which we worship, fellowship, learn, eat and play. I’m reminded of that old hymn, “The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple, the church is not a resting place, the church is a people. I am the church! You are the church! We are the church together! All who follow Jesus, all around the world, yes, we’re the church together!” The rebuilding starts in each of our hearts, remembering that we just might be the only scripture someone ever reads. As one of my favorite Michael Jackson song prophetically says, it starts “with the man [or woman] in the mirror.” We, church, must change our ways, if we want to make the world a better place, we need to take a look at ourselves and make a change. So honestly ask yourself: Does how you live God’s Word make people want to get to know Jesus more? We’re all works in progress that must face those places in our lives we are not reflecting the image of God.  Rebuilding begins by committing ourselves to fully embody the beliefs we sing, read and hear on Sunday mornings in all we think, say and do the other six days of the week. Rebuilding might also mean sacrificing our comfort for the sake of another, burying old, bad habits, opening ourselves up to being held accountable by fellow brothers and sisters, spending more hours in prayer than on the internet or phone.

Mission trips are opportunities to be the literal hands, feet and voice of Christ in our world, but such opportunities are presented to us daily. We are always on a mission or in mission for God no matter if we’re on Eleuthera or at home, at work or in the grocery store. God gives us everyday opportunities to be his hands, feet and voice in a world that desires to see God’s presence outside of the church walls. Are you seizing those God-given moments to be Christ to the world? Such a commitment to be Christ in your everyday life could be the foundation of a stronger, more relevant church that not only talks about changing the world, but is in fact changing the world as we know it.

How Do You Want to Be Remembered?

Can I lend you a hand?

How do you want to be remembered or known by people? I've done many funerals since coming to Wesley Memorial. I believe the count is up to 16 lives celebrated. All have truly been celebrations of life, and as family and friends gathered together to tell stories of the deceased they spoke of characteristics, behaviors, hobbies each loved one would always be remembered or known. In my mandatory University 101 class with Dr. Parker at Gardner Webb University, I remember he had us write our obituaries. I wish I still had what I wrote because for the life of me, I can't remember what I wrote in my obituary. Dr. Parker prepped us for this task by asking, "How do you want people to remember you?"

I've been thinking about this a lot as I've been spending what looks like will be one of my favorite member's last couple days with us in this world. Doris is like a grandmother to me, and she will be remembered to me for her abounding love and cheerfulness. She is a person who never meets a stranger, and you can't help but love Doris because she can't help but love people. I know hers is the kind of life that Jesus will welcome into heaven with the words, "Well done, my good and faithful servant." I like to tell people that I have a great job because it is simply my job to love people. Doris' life was about loving people; it wasn't a job, but just how she was--a person defined by loved. She will be remembered forever by her family and friends for her love. How do you want to be remembered?

Yesterday after church as I was sitting with Doris; I got a call, but didn't answer it. As I was leaving the hospital I listened to a voicemail from a man named Joseph who asked me to call back. I called Joseph back, and he said, "Hi Rev. Sipes. I heard you are a person who helps people, and I need help." I've received similar calls from various people in need around Columbia. You give your card to one person, and suddenly your number makes its into the hands of those who need a ride to work, a meal, some gas, a person to talk to, clothes or help with finding a place to stay. I don't mind. I've never thought much about these calls, other than it is my job as a clergy person to help such people in need. I don't think my college obituary said anything about being a person who helps people, but when Joseph called me, I immediately felt honored to be known as a person who helps people.That's how I want to be known and remembered! I can think of many things I wish I would be known for--a great runner, a great preacher, a theologian, a writer, an artist, a fashionista, the list could go on and on of those things I wish I would be known for that have everything to do with my abilities, work and outward appearance and very little to do with something so simple, yet worthy, as being known as a person who helps people. I want people to know me and remember me as a person who helps people--a person who empties myself for people the way Jesus did for people every single day.

Me and Doris

Striving to be a person who helps people in the name of Jesus seems to me like a much better, fulfilling life than striving for the recognition of the world--an empty pursuit that will never bring lasting satisfaction or fulfillment. If I am honest with myself, most of the things I want to be known for have everything to do with me and nothing to do with God and how God desires I live this one life I've been given.  Sure I claim to use my God-given gifts and talents for God, but ultimately I make life about me, me, me, and such a life is exhausting because it is never ending! My prayer is that God will satisfy my heart as I use my life simply to help people in all the ways I can, using my gifts, my talents, my resources for others, so that God may be glorified in the help he leads me to provide for his people everywhere. My prayer is that more people will call saying, "Hi Rev. Sipes, I heard you're a person who helps people, and I need help."

Stop

What does this road sign mean to you?

Stop. Do you ever really stop? As I was hurriedly driving through town trying to get this and that done, trying to use my time with the utmost efficiency so that not a minute went wasted, I noticed that we humans rarely stop. This could be another lesson I've learned while observing my dogs because they are all too good at  stopping from taking time to smell the flowers, pee on a bush, say hello to other furry friends, cuddle in a lap or soak up the sunniest part of the yard, dogs can teach us something about stopping. As my late father-in-law used to say as he chased such rabbit trails that I too am in the habit of doing, "However, I digress." This is not a post about lessons learned from dogs, but simply an observation of the fact that rarely do we US East Coasters stop. We're always on and rarely off. We're people of production who've been taught to judge ourselves and others by how much we do and accomplish. I used to love the advice of my first FCA huddle leader, "Do not fear death, fear a wasted life," but I think such a phrase all too well defines our over zealous on-the-go way of life; it is sadly a truth about who we are and what we value, a lifestyle that keeps us all occupied 24/7/365. Many of us truly fearing deep inside a wasted life that will not be remembered for any accomplishment.
As I was driving through town, I noticed that rarely does anyone completely stop for a stop sign. You know those big, red signs that by law instruct us to completely stop? Some of my athletes I've coached have failed the driver's exam because they did not make a full and complete stop. Most of us pause ever so slightly to make sure no other cars or people are preventing us from hurrying on to whatever task we are currently in hot pursuit. I'm guilty of this--all too guilty in fact. Stop signs are merely suggestions, just the way speed limits are suggestions, right?
I noticed myself and others disobeying the law time and time again all within the span of an hour, none of us thinking anything of it; no one ever really does until someone gets hurt, I think. Such a rush pace of life in the fast lane is exhausting. I was in a clergy peer group discussion in Nashville at GBOD (General Board of Discipleship), and when asked to describe adults today the number one description was "tired." There is no time to stop, to break, to breathe. I remember during my first six months at my first appointment, I was utterly overwhelmed and exhausted. I started going to a pastoral counselor to unload some of the burdens and pressures I had been heaping on myself. I remember telling him after just six months in the "real world," "If these six months are a window into what being an adult is all about, I don't want to be an adult." He said to me, "But life--adult life or any life--doesn't have to be that way. We've made life that way. Perhaps as a leader in the church, you need to teach that there is another way."

Do you ever just stop and praise God
for his beautiful handiwork?

Just as we often ignore the big, red stop signs of our everyday existence as drivers, we, Christians, tend to ignore or at least play down the whole 4th commandment where God commands us to "observe the Sabbath and keep it holy," or in other words stop and honor God of Lord of the Sabbath. Yes, Jesus "worked" on the Sabbath (Mark 2) and in doing so he honored our Father as Lord of the Sabbath, but we cannot deny that Jesus was also very much in the habit of keeping Sabbath by stopping, retreating away to pray, to be alone, to worship, to eat, to commune with his closest friends. This one incident in Mark 2 does not null and void the full picture of Jesus' life and ministry that illustrates much sabbathing, coming to a full stop before God.
Our modern concept of Sabbath being an hour or two on Sunday is merely a rolling stop at a stop sign, and let's be honest, for most of us, the hour or two we church together is more about us than it is about God. Yes, I said it. The music that's not to your taste, the person sitting in your pew, pews being roped off, the preacher's mediocre sermon, the person wearing jeans or bringing coffee into the sanctuary, a fussy baby wouldn't irritate or distract you so much if you were really there for God. "The sabbath was made for humankind, and not humankind for the sabbath; the Son of Man is Lord of the sabbath." Or as contemporary Christian singer and songwriter, Matt Redman, sings, "I'm coming back to the heart of worship/it's all about you/all about you, Jesus/I'm sorry for the thing I've made it/When it's all about you/It's all about you Jesus." Redman's song is about worship, but the same could be said about getting back to the heart of the Sabbath; it's all about Jesus, and yet do we even really stop for Jesus?

Another Lesson from a Dog

Wiley

My sister's dog, Wiley, has been living with me and my husband for almost three months. He is just a puppy, and he needs lots of attention. Recently he has started to guard the dog food with a ferocity we have never witnessed in him until now. We put out three bowls in the morning and evening; one bowl for every dog. Wiley likes to eat from all three bowls, and he doesn't like to let Zip or Nova, our two dogs, eat from any of the bowls. He hasn't quite learned to share very well yet, and because of that he has put on a few pounds. At first Hiram (my husband) and I didn't notice Wiley standing guard over the food bowls. I usual put out the food in my morning rush to get ready for work, so I don't sit and watch them eat. And Hiram usually fills the bowls as we are fixing or eating our supper, so again, we don't watch them eat. We noticed Wiley had gained quite a few pounds--more than just the typical puppy filling out, though that is what we attributed his weight gain. But last week when we did watch the dogs eat, Wiley bounced from one bowl to the next, not allowing the other dogs to eat at all even though there was plenty of food to go around. Our dogs do not go without food; they are well fed and loved members of our family. Wiley must know, after 3 months of this same feeding routine, that there will always be food every morning and every evening as sure as the sun rises and falls, and yet still he guards the food as if he doesn't know when and where he will get his next meal.

Jesus said in Matthew 6, "Do not worry about your life, what you will eat, what you will drink, and what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them." And yet, many of us still hang on to food, clothing, and other material things like we don't have enough when the reality is that many of us living in the US and sitting in pews on Sunday have more than enough. Then why do so many refuse to share, to hoard, to guard what they claim is theirs? "Where your treasure is, there your heart will also be." Many hearts are given to the treasures we hoard for ourselves while many in our own very community don't have access to the basics such as shelter and food. Maybe it's time we all read the parable of the rich young ruler (Matthew 19, Mark 10, Luke 18), and recognize that many of us (Myself included! I'm a product of consumerism!) also would have a hard time letting go of all our possessions, but letting go of all we have and all we are is exactly what Jesus calls his disciples to do when we choose to follow him. Too often we forget that greed--ever so prevalent in our culture--is a sin. So too is gluttony, and who can argue that we are gluttons in more ways than just food gluttons. In another parable Jesus says, "Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions." When we stop greedily guarding ours as ours and only ours, then just maybe God will be able to use what we have to help others who do not have. John Wesley said earn all you can and save all you can, so that you can give all you can. The truth is that many of us live lives centered on self, and with a little more attention and intention, we will be able to give much more than we think we can; but yes it may involve sacrifice. If all your basic human needs are met, then you have enough to help make sure others' basic human needs are also met.  So ask yourself: WWJD--what would Jesus do? "Foxes have holes and birds have nests, but the son of man has no where to lay his head." Are you ready to follow Jesus?

A Lesson from a Mannequin

I have a mannequin in my office. Yes, a three-dimensional representation of a human form that displays clothes. I don't know what I am going to do with it, but when a friend offered a free mannequin I thought it might come in useful one day. But for now she stands in my office in a pretty Banana Republic dress though she lacks a head and both arms. As I was sitting in my office trying to find inspiration for Sunday's sermon, it suddenly occurred to me that too many people who call themselves "Christian" are not too different than my mannequin. Much of my frustration as a minister in our world today comes from people who would rather play church than be church--much the same way kids play house or play school. Too many people equate being Christian with showing up in their Sunday best with smiles on their faces every Sunday morning for worship; but there is more to being church than showing up and dressing the part of a dutiful Christian. John Wesley had a couple names for such Christians: "almost Christians," "honest heathens," "nominal Christians." I can hear the band Casting Crowns singing "If we are the body, why aren't his arms not reaching?/Why aren't his hands healing?/Why aren't his words teaching?/And if we are the body, why aren't his feet going?/Why is his love not showing them there is a way?" Doesn't Jesus tell us in Matthew 28 to "go and make disciples of all nations…" In Matthew's Gospel alone, Jesus says "go" almost 150 times. Jesus lived a life on the go, serving everyone from the most marginalized people of society to Roman centurions, lawyers, tax collectors, and everyone in between. He lived Sunday every day. He came to be God incarnate, and such living couldn't just happen in the temple or synagogue! Jesus set an example for us to be people who go, reach out, speak God's word of love to a world that is in need of hearing, feeling and seeing God's Word embodied. Such a life cannot happen visiting our pews every Sunday, or staying within the comforts of our church facilities. Faithful going means leaving our churches to be God incarnate in our world. A pastor long before I came to Wesley Memorial posted a sign as you leave the church offices, "You are now entering the mission field." To not go and do and serve for and in Jesus' name is to be no more useful to the Kingdom of God than the mannequin who stands in my office who neither walks, speaks or reaches out. In John Wesley's 1741 sermon, "Almost Christian," he accused the church of being asleep," or by my interpretation being no more than mannequins. How, then, are you embodying God's word in all you do and say outside of your church building? Don't settle for merely playing church, be the church! Who knows, such people might just change the world!   

To Speak or Not to Speak

When conflict arises are you a fight or flight person? Or, when you want to make a point are you a fight or flight person? This morning I read an article in the Wall Street Journal that used different language for the fight-or-flight paradigm. The economist Albert G. Hirschman wrote a book in 1970 called Exit, Voice and Loyalty where Hirschman studied people and organizations' decisions to voice or exit--or in other words to fight or flight. Roger Lowenstein, the author of "The Choice: To Squawk or to Go?", the article in today's WSJ, writes, "Hirschman saw that when organizations make it easy to exit, voice is weakened. Yet, for voice to be effective, a possibility of exit must be present...Exit and voice must coexist in 'seesaw'...Exit is forceful, but it rules out using voice later. However, the reverse isn't true...and Hirschman's third leg of his stool, "loyalty" holds exit at bay." 

Lowenstein points out that "American culture generally have become more fickle." That means the loyalty leg of Hirschman's model is weakened, unstable and perhaps in many ways broken. This also means that exiting is a lot easier, and I would argue that exit is our culture's default at large rather than voice. We've largely become people of flight rather than fight. This is a problem for the United Methodist Church, and many other mainline denominations that are declining and living everyday in the shadow of the inevitable death tsunami predicted by Lovett Weems. We are living in an environment where voice is weakened and because loyalty doesn't hold much weight with people anymore, exit is all too easy. What pastor hasn't made a member upset and the member's threat to the pastor is, "Well, I'll leave the church if you do X." Exiting is not just a present option, but it is the easy default option of many church goers. It is often chosen over voice. Though there are exceptions to the rule, for which I am very thankful.

I've seen this at a pastor of a small church going through transition and change. Environments characterized by a lot of transition and change and rebuilding are ripe for conflict among members who are responsible for working together to build a future. Such a task is not easy, requires a lot of patience, investing time, energy and resources with out any immediate return and people do not agree, so I've seen many people throw their hands up and simply exit because that is easier than voice. But exit does nothing to help, or change, or better the situation of our aging, declining church. The only point "exiting" makes to those of us left behind to carry on is a reminder of the difficult task--sometimes seemingly impossible task--of being, doing, and growing church together.

I've also felt the urge to exit as a young clergy very frustrated with the United Methodist Church. Between the hoops we have to jump through for ordination, the politics of the church, the lack of support and connectionism, the dated structure, the focus on numbers through new initiatives such as vital congregations, the forms, the burden of apportionments that--however good--prevent small churches like mine from having funds to do hands-on outreach ministry in our community because we have very few loyal tithers and $15,000+ is sent to the conference for apportionments, to the daily tasks of "maintaining the aquarium" with little time or support from church loyalist to cast nets on the other side of the boat. The exit option, at times, is very, very tempting.

But exiting is not in our DNA as Methodists, or as Christians. John Wesley--to whom I have more loyalty than to the UMC--chose voice rather than exit; he chose to fight rather than flight, and his life was not easy because of his decision. Even on John Wesley's death bed, his intentions of the Methodist movement was to reform the existing Anglican church. He never wanted a new denomination; he only wanted to reform the current one. He was not always liked. He fought hard battles. He sacrificed a lot in the way of personal happiness and comfort to see the church changed and disciples made. At the end of his life--as hard as it was--I am sure Wesley said choosing to voice, to fight was well worth the impact his life and movement made on a lukewarm church.

As loyal as I am to John Wesley, I am even more loyal to a radical prophet named Jesus who being God could have chosen the easy exit, to have the burden of his cup lifted at any time, but who chose to be loyal to God's will to reconcile humanity through him to the point of death on the cross. Holy Week begins tomorrow with Jesus' "triumphal" entry into Jerusalem which was a loud, defiant voice in the face of the oppressive Roman regime. I learned from Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan in The Last Week that as Jesus rode in to Jerusalem on a donkey, on the other side of Jerusalem, Pilate rode in on a horse with 600 hundred foot soldiers. Pilate paraded in that way every Passover season. Jesus could have chosen to exit, to flee, but he chose to "fight," to have a voice when it was very dangerous to do so.

Lowenstein ends his article with a challenge, "So perhaps it is time for some balance, for social structures that listen better and slow the impulse to quit...we should give voice--lest it atrophy--a chance." Churches can learn a lot from Lowenstein and Hirschman. How are we, church, working to listen better and slow our people's--and our own--impulse to take the easy way out? As Christians in the Methodist denomination, we inherit many examples of people who refused to take the easy way out, refused to exit, refused to be silent. We have the opportunity to join our voice to those who have come before whose voices changed the world. So, before you give up on the church, have you tried using your voice to activate much-needed changes? To remain silent is a type of exit. Silence means you may be physically present, but you are mentally, emotionally and spiritually checked-out. Exit, flight, avoidance, silence is easy, is safe, is comfortable. But such a life does nothing for the present state of church and world. Don't waste the voice God has given you; our world--our church--needs people who aren't afraid to risk speaking up.

Lessons From My Dog

Life lessons from an unlikely teacher, my dog, Zip.

I learn a lot from my dog. That may sound ridiculous to non-dog lovers. Dogs and other animals may seem like unlikely teachers; we're the "masters" after all, right? But seriously animals can teach us a lot about life if we take the time to observe them closely. For example, yesterday I preached on Ruth 1:15-22 about Ruth's devotion to Naomi--and thus illustrating God's devotion to us in hopeless times. As I was writing my sermon at 4:30am on Saturday morning (yes, cutting it close to the ever nearing Sunday morning deadline!), Zip, my beloved JRT-chiuaua mix, sat curled in my lap. Every time I took an extended pause or sighed a frustrated prayer for inspiration, she would look up at me with eyes that said, "You can do it!" I had been sick with a stomach bug all week, so I think she intuitively knew I needed some extra love, encouragement and support. She never left my lap until I was finished. There was a night also this week I just slept in the bathroom, and Zip never wandered from my side, choosing to sleep curled up next to me on the hard bathroom floor instead of our comfy bed. There is a reason dogs are called a human's best friend. Loyalty. Devotion. Faithfulness. Companionship. All things the story of Ruth taught us this past Sunday.

My faithful companion; always by my side.

Zip's life and behavior have illumined other biblical lessons for me. For example, when we were reading the story of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11, I thought about how Zip gets on the tallest piece of furniture she can, so she can be taller than me and Hiram, illustrating her desire to be greater than her masters just like the people building the Tower of Babel. Our dog trainer tells us that we're to make her get down when she tries to assert her dominance in such a way. God had to do the same thing with those humans trying to be greater than their Creator. Or Zip embodies all too well the cycle of obedience and disobedience of God's people wandering in the wilderness. Zip is trainable, but she is stubborn and has a mind of her own; she wants to do things her way. Sound familiar? Slowly she is learning that obedience and discipline--rules--are actually for her own good. Or, it is not in Zip's nature to willingly share; whether toys, bones, bed space or mommy time, Zip is quite selfish and likes to hoard everything for herself. Though she is relatively silent, you can see her say with her eyes and a snarl, "Mine, Mine, Mine!!" Hmmmm...sound familiar again? Zip's nature doesn't sound too far from our own human nature, does it? She is a mix of good and bad, making good decisions, but also making some bad ones. Sometimes--more often than not--teaching me what not to do as much as what to do! I guess we humans, despite our higher cognitive abilities, are really just animals. My dad told me that once when he was giving me the birds and the bees talk. I thought he was ridiculous (not to mention slightly awkward), but having been a dog owner for 3 years now, perhaps dad was right; at the end of the day we are part of the animal kingdom!

Zip is named for Zipporah, Moses wife.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised that she
is full of biblical lessons for me!

These are the kinds of things I think about on long runs when I'm out on the roads in the wee hours of the morning all by myself. I was thinking about this as I returned from my run this morning to find Zip in the only piece of sunshine in our backyard. She often does this--seeks out the one sunny spot in our oak-tree shaded backyard. Another life lesson brought to me by Zip. Often we feel darkness around us--hard times, valleys, pain, suffering, struggles--and we do nothing to move to find that one spot in our life where light is shining in. There's always light shining somewhere; Zip always finds sunshine even if it is off her beaten path. Instead of seeking out sunshine, many times, we wallow in the shade, shivering and shaking in our own misery. We feel stuck in under a rain cloud much like Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh who lives under a perpetual grey cloud. Such a spot can make us blind to the sunny spots in life. We convince ourselves that light cannot break into our darkness. But didn't Jesus tell us that the darkness of this world has been overcome with the Light? Like Zip--in such a simple and intuitive decision--we must see where Light is breaking into the darkness of our life and world, and sometimes that means we must move to that light, not waiting for the sunny spots to come our way by-chance.

My mom used to say to me when I woke up in a bad mood, or came home from school in a bad mood that I can choose not to be in a bad mood; I can choose how to respond to present circumstances. This advice used to annoy me, and only make me hold on to my bad mood longer. But my mom was right--so many of the lessons she taught me as a child have panned out to be true and valuable, and I am thankful, now that I am an adult, for her pearls of wisdom. My mom's advice and Zip's chase for the sunniest spots in our yard teach us the same lesson: we do get to choose how we respond to "dark" days--whatever that may look like for you. God does not want us to be miserable. But we live in a broken world where broken people do broken things, so there will be those down days, or weeks or months, but we must remember that "the Light shines into darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it." Our God is Emmanuel, God with us--yes, with us even in the middle of all the brokenness of our world and our lives. There's always light shining somewhere; sometimes you have to just seek it out.

Revolution

This Sunday I am preaching on Judges 2:6-13. Joshua has just died, and now God's people are drifting away from everything Joshua worked so hard to instill in them. The Israelites, we are told in these verses, were faithful during Joshua's leadership, but then almost as soon as Joshua died they began to worship other gods. We specifically are told that the children of the generation Joshua led did not follow in their parents' footsteps. It seems like the children of the supposed faithful are guilty for going astray. But I think that this sudden drift away from God might not necessarily be a problem with the youth as much as it is a problem with the parents. Were the parents raising their children in a Godly home? Were the parents passing on their love and knowledge of God? Were the parents holding their children to the same expectations that Joshua had held them to? Where was the community of faith to fill in where parents did not teach, did not pass on, did not show? If the faithful generation was so faithful, then what went so wrong with the children of the faithful? I think if the faithful were really faithful in and with everything then such a drastic and dramatic drift from God by the children of the faithful wouldn't have happened--shouldn't have happened. 

Today we, the faithful generation of the church of the past want to blame the children, youth, young people of today for the the state of the church. But what have we given them to inherit? What kind of faith have we passed on? What kind of love and knowledge have we instilled in them? How have we embodied our beliefs for today's generation? Maybe instead of asking, "What's wrong with these kids today?!", we need to look right at ourselves, and not others, not them, not the young people…but where did we, the faithful, fail in passing on our faith that has led to the current state of the church? Yes, our culture has had a significant influence on our young people, and yes, times have changed and this generation coming up now is different than my parents' or grandparents' generations.  It's much easier to point out what exterior corruption has caused our children to drift from the church. And it is definitely easier, less offensive and much less convicting to sit around and talk about how we can change "them"--that is the 30s and under. But, again, perhaps we need to begin to change us, the church, and how we communicate and pass on our love and knowledge of God in relevant ways that speak to the children, youth and young people of today. Maybe a little repentance needs to happen for the ways we have failed our children. 

I went to Revolution 2013 this past weekend with two of my youth. For the past several years, the SCUMC Annual Conference has sponsored a Revolution weekend in Columbia where literally thousands of UM youth 7th to 12th grade descend upon Columbia for worship, fellowship and service. It is an awesome experience to see 2,000+ youth worshiping and participating in service projects together. The youth this weekend sang "I'll Fly Away" and "O For A Thousand Tongues to Sing" and other familiar hymns, but to tunes and rhythms that had 2,000 youth clapping, jumping, waving their hands, shouting out, dancing around---all for the glory of God. They also rapped along with Christian rappers rapping about Jesus' love; they moved to the beats, and pumped their fists and danced--all for the glory of God. They heard a message about sin and our need for a rescuer, grace and forgiveness, and having faith and standing up for our beliefs. At the end of the weekend, 200+ youth gave their lives to Christ for the very first time, and almost every other person recommitted their lives to following Jesus. This was definitely not your "normal" church experience. The music was different. The delivery of the sermon was a bit different. But the message of Jesus Christ was the same, and hundreds were moved by the gospel wrapped in such a "different" church experience than has been passed on to them. Revolution is testimony to the faithful generation effectively passing on our faith in a way that will not result in drifters, but in dedicated disciples. Such worship events will inspire a revolution among the youth and young of today.

I don't know about the other adults, pastors, and youth leaders there, but this weekend gave me such hope for the future of our church. I was in awe taking in 2,000 young people pumped up for Jesus Christ, and even more so when hundreds were moved to come forward to commit their lives to Christ. You would have thought we were gathered at the Carolina Coliseum for a basketball game or a concert or some other event that usually elicits such energy and enthusiasm. I heard more people say, "I get to go to Revolution again this year!" than "I have to go to Revolution." The youth wanted to be at church, wanted to learn, wanted to sing, wanted to serve, wanted to meet other youth who were fired up about God, wanted to be fed. 

It's not that our youth and young people lack the desire to know God, nor is there absent the search for God. It's there; that was evident this weekend. It was a very hopeful weekend for the church, but in that same hopeful feeling, I also experienced a little bit of heartache because I can't help but think about what kind of church and to whom are we sending most of these youth back to after such a mountain top experience that was Revolution? I certainly hope and pray that youth leaders and pastors can engage their youth so that they can continue to learn, worship and grow in the faith. It is, after all, up to my generation, my parents' generation and my grandparents' generation to provide an environment where children can be instructed by the faithful, where youth can express their faith in a variety of ways, where young adults can ask questions and be a part of change in the church. It doesn't have to be go-big-or-go-home with bright lights and loud music to the scale that Revolution was, but I would say our local congregations do need to look into ways that they can make worship more relevant and engaging to and with the under 30 crowd. This kind of environment where children, youth and young adults can be nurtured and grown in the faith might look very, very different from the environment you or I were nurtured in the faith. We who have always known and experienced church a certain way must swallow our pride and be ok with church looking a little bit different. Because it is our job as the faithful to pass on the faith--whatever music, worship style, or small group experience that may be or look like. We're called to cling to our faith...not the manner in which we learn our faith, celebrate our faith and live our faith. We must remember that the "traditions" we inherited as far as music, worship style, etc have evolved over time. The message has always been the same. Today we are in the middle of a revolution, and so the delivery of the same message we learned as children must be radically different if we the church is going to be relevant and effectively raise up a generation of faithful disciples. It is up to us--those who call ourselves "the faithful"--to either raise disciples or drifters.

Revolution 2013 Video Clip: