I had a great time last night in LA visiting the Tribe community and hearing renowned missionary Andrew Jones speak. Andrew is one of my heroes. He and his family are traveling across Europe (and Africa and Asia) spreading the good news of God’s kingdom to unreached and fringe elements in society. They bring training and hospitality and the essence of the salt and light that Jesus proclaimed we are to be.
The Jones family has been on a West Coast speaking tour and is off to New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing over the next period of their sojourn. They plan to be in Turkey, Macedonia, Iran, Pakistan and India next year. Visit Andrew’s website http://tallskinnykiwi.com and figure out how to send a true missionary some financial support.
I have a long-time friend and business associate who is a follower of eastern religion. I think he may be a buddhist, but I am not sure. He likes to compare the human ability to control one’s own destiny to the ability that drivers at the Disneyland attraction, Autopia, have to control the direction and length of their drive. We all know that the steering wheels of the Autopia vehicles are not connected to any steering mechanism and that the vehicles travel on a predetermined path guided by a rail constructed by the attraction designers.
I’ve lived long enough to understand the truth of this metaphor. Putting it in the simplest terms, my life hasn’t turned out the way I expected it to. When I reflect on the twists and turns and the ups and downs of my roller coaster ride, I can see that what seems to be serendipity and chance have been the main players explaining how I have arrived at my current way-station. This explains why I have abandoned any model of church life that involves the word “driven.” Baseball diamond illustrations and membership covenants are no longer a part of my thinking.
Although I have committed to following Jesus, discovered more about my spiritual gifts and talents than anyone would want to know, served faithfully in several ministry positions and been on mission for many years, I have not experienced a straight-line sense of progress. While many have been playing baseball I seem to have been caught in some sort of cross between badminton and soccer where every once in a while I get hit with a racket or kicked in the head!
In the few years when I pastored a Vineyard church a worship song with a catchy tune became a favorite in our congregation, it’s lyrics:
You are my shepherd
I have no needs
You lead by peaceful streams
And You refresh my life
You hold my hand
And You guide my steps
I could walk through the valley of death
And I won’t be afraid
Because You are in control
You are in control
You cause everything to work together
You truly have a sovereign plan
And You know who I am
And You made who I am
And You love who I am
Because You are in control
You are in control
To be fair, even though I sang the song with gusto, and it certainly seems Biblical, it sure can seem at times that if God is control, he sure is jerking me around a lot! I suppose that more than anything, this song is a prayer and a petition. We are afraid and at times feel very needy and out of control. Yet we pray for peace, contentment and a sense of divine guidance.
Around that same time I heard about the bus. You know, the one you can hop on if you want to go where the a particular church or denomination is going. I guess that bus turned out to have a lot of stops where pastors and churches and members who had signed up either got off the bus or were “gently” escorted.
The classic film, Forest Gump, poses the question with subtle nuance: Is life the result of destiny or serendipity? At the end of the film, as the feather floats up from the childhood book where it has remained for oh so many years the viewer is left to ponder the answer.
I know I love the illusion of control, thinking my hands are on the steering wheel of my life. Each year when I make a very short list of resolutions I exhibit my love for this idea by setting those goals. At the end of the year I can look back and realize that twists and turns and life’s ups and downs may have had more to do with what happened than my goals and aspirations.
This year I’ve decided to try to do more and more of the things that I really love doing. I am going to stop concerning myself quite so much with where I am going and sit back and enjoy the ride. I’ll let you know how that works out for me!
I just finished reading Imaginary Jesus by Matt Mikalatos. I should warn other recovering pharisees like myself that a reader of this excellent first novel might be offended by the lack of “religious correctness” in the story. I know that one important result of this reading is that I am now required to visit Portland, Oregon where the book is set.
This novel is part of the BarnaBooks line from Tyndale. Barna did research that Matt used in this work. A humorous and irreverent novel that features a talking donkey and “Testosterone Jesus” as important characters has got to be work a read, don’t you think? You can see the author himself in the video below:
I had a moment over the weekend of deep emotional impact. I was driving with a friend to Mother’s Day brunch. I started talking about my mom. She has been dead now for 20 years. As I shared with my friend the story of my mom’s brokenness I began to get in touch with some deep emotional pain that I haven’t ever processed.
There were moments as we talked that I thought that if I tapped in to that pain hard enough, that a dam would break and a wellspring of healing tears would come. I knew in that moment that there is a moment of healing coming for me in the near future. As we drove along it wasn’t the time or the place for that catharsis, but a glimpse of it’s nearness gave me a lot of encouragement.
We all come from a story of brokenness and redemption. The cry of the human heart is for the compassionate and listening ear of a friend. Slowing down to listen to the heart of one another is an important step in the healing process. How amazing it is that God always bends such an ear toward us. It helps if our brothers and sisters are nearby. But knowing that God is there for us is one of the amazing benefits of following Jesus.
I’ve really been enjoying the last couple of weeks. We leased a Honda Accord and I have felt like everything is coming up roses! There’s nothing like driving a new car to give you that feeling. Then yesterday afternoon on the way home from the office, Bam! I was rear-ended, and pretty hard! I avoided hitting the car in front of me, and drove the car into the parking lot of a service station on the corner. I was a little light-headed from the adrenaline and the bump on the head, and was amazed that the person who hit me, had driven off.
Rear-ended!
A couple of young people witnessed the accident and stopped in to see if I was okay and to wait for the police, in case their statement was needed. I called 911 and waited. A few minutes later another young man drove up in a truck and told me he had witnessed the whole thing and had followed the person who hit me. Unfortunately, he did not get the license plate. A Riverside Police officer drove up a little later and took my report and the witness statement and gave me information for the insurance company.
Driving home I felt a definite disturbance to my “mojo.” A little earlier that day I had been talking with a friend who mentioned that he had lost his “mojo.” When we were talking about it I thought I knew what he meant, but I asked him anyway. He said he just had not been feeling on top of things. I looked up the dictionary definition of:
mo·jo
/?mo?d?o?/ Show Spelled[moh-joh] Show IPA
–noun,plural-jos, -joes.
1.
the art or practice of casting magic spells; magic; voodoo.
2.
an object, as an amulet or charm, that is believed to carry a magic spell. [dictionary.com]
It’s true, the last several weeks have been feeling magical, but I don’t believe in magic, I believe in real life. But it is kind of human to enjoy seasons when it feels like we are going from mountaintop to mountaintop with no trips to the valley. But that is not the way life really works, is it? Even though I have been experiencing a season of profoundly experiencing the Holy Spirit’s presence in my daily life, literally going from what feels like one divine appointment to the next, that feeling couldn’t last forever, could it? I was listening to a sermon the other day and the preacher seemed convinced that watching “Sex and the City” could definitely block the presence of the Holy Spirit. That didn’t sound exactly right to me, but I am still thinking about it.
Purple Flowers with Thistles!
As a recovering legalist (Pharisee) I am learning that God’s presence does not depend on my activity, but on His activity. My salvation does not depend on my actions, but on his completed action. I can’t “conjure” up God any more than I can make bushes burn or Red Seas part! I am learning to enjoy my friendship and partnership with God. It seems that the more he floods into my life, the more I experience his overflowing. One example? My wife was thinking about the accident in the midnight hour last night (she told me about it this morning) and before she knew what had happened she found herself praying for the person who hit me. Praying that they would find and experience God! What a great example of the overflowing of God’s Spirit.
We live on a Ranch in Riverside County, California. And the ranch is in full bloom this spring with all kinds of wild plants (weeds) that have an abundance of flowers. I like these little purple flowers that grow on the thistle plants. When the plants dry out later this summer it won’t be safe to walk among them. Our dog’s coats will be filled with stickers. So, this is what life is like, huh? Flowers grow among the thistles, and then they dry out and the seeds fall to the ground. If the next year is particularly rainy, the plants will grow taller and the flowers will abound.
I am grateful to have walked away from my accident unharmed. I feel blessed. I know that Jesus loves me! Forget about “mojo.” I am just going to keep following in His footsteps.
I was happy to attend the first Verge Conference this year. Missional Communities are the new buzzword for churches. Megachurches and minichurches are interested in discovering what it means to be organic and missional. I was happy to be in a place where I could meet Tony and Felicity Dale and hear Neil Cole speak. For me, the few conference days were one of those “aha!” times when knowledge and inspiration come together to give clear future direction.
Everyone Gets to Play by John Wimber
One of the take-aways from the conference was the way that one of John Wimber’s one-liners has infiltrated common usage. More than one speaker when describing the missional community proclaimed boldly “Everyone Gets to Play!” By the way, this is the title of a book of Wimber’s writings compiled by his pastor-church planter daughter-in-law, Christy Wimber. Now, I have some experience in the Vineyard. And I think I know what John was saying when he said it. I also think I have some insight into what he was not saying!
Let’s take a side trip into what “Everyone Gets To Play” means in children’s sports. This is the concept that has every player participate in the game, no matter their skill level. It means that every player will get a certain amount of playing time in the soccer game, or a certain number of at-bats and in the field in the little league game. It does not mean: “Everyone Gets to Play Goalie! or Everyone Gets to Play Pitcher!”
In the church, everyone does NOT get to play Preacher, or Pastor, or Worship Leader! Recently I started attending the church services of a congregation that is, in a sense, restarting. The first week the Pastor proclaimed something like: “We want to release you to follow your [ministry] destiny and dreams!” My inner-Pharisee replied, “No, I don’t think so, Pastor, because my destiny is to preach for the next six weeks to your congregation, and I don’t think you want to release me to follow that dream!”
You see, in a baseball game, there is only one pitcher, in a football game only one quarterback, and in a soccer game only one goalie. Even though Wimber’s statement was a game-changer in the church circles he influenced, it didn’t actually change the game that was being played. I do believe that when Wimber first became a Christian he “got into the ministry.” He was a soul-winner for sure before he ever went on the staff of a church. He was doing Jesus’s stuff, the stuff he was allowed to do by his denomination, 24-7. He hadn’t yet started playing the “church” game, I don’t think.
For people like Wimber, those who aren’t consumers but those who are full participants in the way of Jesus, there is no amount of money, power, fame or position that motivates them to do Jesus’s stuff. They do it because they understand that it is the gospel in action. I wish I could say that I have grasped this concept for many years, but I only have kind-of figured it out in the last couple of months. I am a minister of Jesus. No, I am no longer a paid clergyman. But I am “a person acting as the agent or instrument of another.” [dictionary.com]
Understanding this has made a huge difference in my life. My clients are my ministry. Each one a gift from God. I found myself comforting a client whose 90 yr. old mother had recently died, praying for a client’s low back pain to be healed and asking God to help my clients keep their home. Now John Wimber figured this out early, and the church noticed and made him a paid clergyman!
Paul didn’t say “Everyone Gets to Play,” he said, we “are the body of Christ” each one of us is a part of it. Being part of a body is not a game we play. Paul’s approach to describing the body, did not leave any room for “special” parts of the body. A close reading of the New Testament does not reveal a clergy-laity distinction and implies that ordinary people were engaged in extraordinary exploits in advancing the gospel.
Over the years I have learned that in the “church game” not everyone gets to play. However, recently I have seen that in the real life that comes from Jesus, we are all invited to be players to the max!
I think the most important thing a follower of Jesus can learn is to hear from God. Walking in the Spirit in our daily lives requires a cultivation of this ability. However, when you hear God about the big things, that is always overwhelming and very re-assuring.
The last time I got clear “orders from headquarters” was in 1999. I had closed my “normal” church the year before and was attending a pastor’s conference. Even though the church had closed I had started Next-Wave and a ministry to skateboarders in Moreno Valley. On the second night of the conference I got a clear message from God that he wanted me to continue in both of those ministries and that they would be very fruitful and so they were.
Now, more than ten years later I have recently attended the Verge 2010 National Missional Community Conference, and I think I may have just gotten fresh “orders.” I didn’t come expecting it, but still some of my struggle to understand what has been happening over the last ten years clicked into place and I think I have some clear direction for at least the next ten years! You don’t know how great that is.
Having listened to the many challenging speakers on the topic of the DNA of Gospel Movements, I can sense that God is on the move here in the U.S. I am excited to be around to see it and look forward to what is going to happen in the years to come.
By the way, I got to interview Neil Cole, author of Church 3.0, and Tony and Felicity Dale, authors of The Rabbit and the Elephant. It seems that planting churches may be simpler than I ever thought!
