Finding the Right Fit

"Then Saul gave David his own armor—a bronze helmet and a coat of mail. David put it on, strapped the sword over it, and took a step or two to see what it was like, for he had never worn such things before.
'I can’t go in these,' he protested to Saul. 'I’m not used to them.' So David took them off again. He picked up five smooth stones from a stream and put them into his shepherd’s bag. Then, armed only with his shepherd’s staff and sling, he started across the valley to fight the Philistine." - 1 Samuel 17:38 - 40 (NLT)

I've been meditating on this passage the past couple of weeks and how it applies to my own quest for a missional form of church and the quest of other missional practitioners like me.

The context of this scene is the Old Testament story when a giant from an enemy nation threatens Israel and challenges them to send their best man out for a fight. No one is willing to take on this challenge until the younger brother of a few of the soldiers shows up. He has no military training or equipment, so King Saul gives young David his own armor to use. After trying it on, David figures out it doesn't work for him and goes back to the simple weapons he is used to. The problem wasn't that Saul's armor was bad. It just wasn't the right fit for David.

Many of us pursuing a call to missional ministry have likely had times when we felt like young David in this story. The methods others try to give us feel a lot like the armor Saul was trying to give David. In over ten years of trying to pursue this call, I've had to shed many pieces of other people's methods because they didn't fit what God was calling me to. Sometimes I've even picked up similar methods again, hoping that somehow things would be different, only to realize they still didn't fit as much as I wished they would.

In the shedding of poorly fitting methods many emotions in both the one offering assistance and the one who is shedding it can ruin the relationship if the parties are not careful. The problem lies in seeing the decision as being a statement of good or bad instead of simply being an issue of finding the right fit. Fans of the traditional methods may feel personal rejection because these methods have worked so well for them and they can't understand why it wouldn't work for everyone the same way. Those of us trying to pursue a missional call can easily give in to a feeling of smugness about how superior our methods are to the "out of date methods of the past." The healthier response is to not interpret these events as judgments of good and bad, but merely an issue of finding the right fit.

As Diakonos, the missional community I now lead, begins to take on more form I find myself going through another season of shedding things that don't fit what God wants to do in this community. In the midst of these seasons, it's a constant battle to remind myself and those around me that it's not an issue of those things being bad. They simply don't fit what God is doing here. This is a path that needs to be traveled with great care, but hopefully the end of the journey is worth the trip.

The Consistent Nature Of A Missional Vision

I was recently sitting down with a friend discussing different aspects of the ministries we lead.  As we neared the end of the conversation he mentioned that Village Soul (the ministry I officially launched just over four years ago) had changed.  This struck me as a little odd because, from my perspective, my vision and mission has not changed that much since even before I launched Village Soul.  Some of the concrete outlets by which we may carry out the vision may have changed, but the vision itself is consistent.

This lead me to think a bit about the nature of a missional vision.  Most people who are committed to a missional vision of church will tell you it's about reproducing followers of Jesus in the context where people gather.  As opposed to people coming to us to hear about Jesus, the missional believer and church bring Jesus to others on their turf in very practical ways.  This essentially has been my vision for life for more years than I care to admit.

Since many of us, myself included, grew up with an idea of church as an institution with meetings and programs that you invite people to for them to learn about Jesus, it can sometimes be challenging to wrap that thinking around the liquid nature of missional church.  It's much like water will take on the form of the container (or context) it finds itself in.  It falls from the sky as rain or snow; depending on the season and where you live.  It runs off into a drain, stream, or river.  Eventually, it makes its way to a lake, reservoir or ocean.  Some ends up flowing through aqueducts and pipes to houses where it comes out of a  tap into a glass, bowl, or pitcher.  From the outside it may look like the water has changed, but it's core nature is the same no matter what container it finds itself in.  In the same way, a missional vision will be consistent even as it remains flexible to the context in which it finds itself.

This difference in perspective does not mean one interpretation or the other is right or wrong.  It simply is a difference of perspective.  For the missional practitioner, the challenge is to be aware of the context in which we present our vision and adapt the language of the vision to that context.  It is also a challenge to be comfortable with others seeing change where we see a consistency.  It's simply the nature of the work we do.

Trusting The Only One Who Can Help In Times Like These

Winter has arrived in central Indiana on a level people here haven't experienced in twenty years.  The family and I enjoyed playing in the snow that kept falling through the day yesterday (nearly 12" total).  Today we will hunker down in the house while the temperatures plummet to levels we haven't seen since we left Minnesota (possibly -21 F by tomorrow morning).  As we experience the luxuries of a warm home on a frigid day, I can't help but think of the friends for whom days like this are a matter of life and death.

Saturday I spent part of the afternoon with a friend visiting those living in the allies and in tent cities around downtown Indianapolis.  We brought extra blankets with us to give them something more to bundle up in during the coldest of days.  We talked with people and encouraged them to find shelter in one of the emergency shelters the city had set up.  In the end, though, we knew we would eventually return to our homes with no idea what would happen to them during these days.

Occasions like this are times when phrases like "all we can do is pray" hit home for me.  As much as I want to serve and help others, there are limits to what I am capable of doing.  This is when I have to place my friends in the hands of God and trust that He will watch over them.  Our resources are finite, but God's resources are infinite.  So, as I go about my routine today, I will be in a constant mode of prayer for those who are in God's hands today and hope for happy reunions and stories of survival when we are reunited on the other side of this weather event.

"What If"s" for 2014

As I look ahead to what God has in store for 2014, I'm asking myself a lot of "What if?" questions about the future of our Diakonos Community (the missional community we are leading).  The answers give me a glimpse of what God can do through through our little, but growing community.

1. What if we created a faith community where those who serve people on the margins of society could gather with those being served to worship together and learn from each other?
2. What if we created a faith community where people in need were not simply seen as projects, but embraced as friends?
3. What if we created a faith community where people can wrestle fully with the implications of following Jesus without fear of being judge or having others offer them quick fixes that shortcut the work of the Holy Spirit?
4. What if we created a faith community where people didn't feel the need to impress one another with their spirituality, but could learn to live in an environment of God's grace and love as we spur one another on toward love and good deeds?

These are the goals I'm pursuing for 2014.

Why Last Night's Heisman Trophy Award Bothers Me

Last night the Downtown Athletic Club in New York City awarded it's annual Heisman Trophy  for the most outstanding player in college football to Jameis Winston.  In this decision the Heisman Trophy reached a new low in selecting honorees. Up until a month ago, Mr Winston was facing the possibility of rape charges for an incident that occurred in December 2012, while he was still an unknown red shirt player at the school.  Authorities claim the alleged victim ceased to cooperate with pursuing charges in February 2013, but this may have happened after she was warned of the consequences of pursuing charges against Mr. Winston in a "football crazy town" like Tallahassee.  Charges were not filed because prosecutors didn't think a conviction was possible. The way their decision was worded does not necessarily mean they thought there was not merit to the case. They just didn't think they could win. That leaves enough questions that the award voters should have taken it into consideration when voting.

Some who defend the decision to give Mr. Winston this award point to a person being innocent until proven guilty in America.  I suppose that case could be made, but "innocent until proven guilty" applies to the court of law. In that sense, yes, he is not guilty of rape. Still, it does not apply to a private association that includes the word "integrity" in it's criteria.  Something happened in which a young woman felt violated. If these were totally baseless charges, the prosecutor should have said something to that affect. Instead saying they didn't think they had a strong enough case to get a conviction should leave enough question in award voters minds that they would consider another choice.

We've had enough examples throughout the country that we give athletes extra latitude in how they treat young women. A recent case in Missouri stands out in my memory right now. This award just validates that mentality more than ever. As the father of three daughters getting close to high school age, that bothers me.  I'd like to believe we live in a culture that will help me protect them from predatory behavior by one of their future male classmates, but this decision and the people defending it leave me doubting that.

In the end whether or not Mr. Winston won the Heisman Trophy this year will not affect his potential professional career when he feels ready to enter the NFL. If he's learned that he needs to be a little more self-controlled around women, then I hope he has a great career. I believe in grace. I believe in second chances. Still, giving him the Heisman this year, when the cloud of suspicion is still there, sends the wrong message to the next generation of athletes.  It's a message that needs to change.

Every Time The Doors Are Open

Growing up in and around traditional church in the 1980's and 90's I remember people talking about those who were at church every time the doors were open.  Our family probably fit that category at that time.  It was like a badge of honor we wore.  If there was something going on at the church building and we didn't have work or school, we were there.  It was a great time.  Things were simple back then.

Reviewing my activity this past weekend had me thinking back to those days.  I can say I participated in 6 - 7 expressions of church in four days (not a typical 4-day period for me), but only two of them happened in a building that we traditionally call church.  This doesn't devalue our traditional expressions of church, but simply recognizes the need to expand our ideas of what is church activity for those who seek to follow Jesus in this contemporary culture.

• Thursday afternoon a group of us served our neighbors through volunteering at the local school's food pantry.  The people we serve were not merely clients, but many have become friends has we seek to show the love of Christ through our actions.  This was an expression of church.
• After we were finished at the pantry, a number of the volunteers and other people connected with our missional community gathered on our back deck for a cookout.  We laughed together.  We talked about life.  Near the end, a few of us talked about more spiritual issues and ended with a time of prayer.  This was an expression of church.
• Friday evening I gathered with others at our home church's building to listen to a young man speak on his own life experience and how it has given him insight into one of the major challenges faced by many in the church today.  His presentation applied to so many areas of life.  It also reaffirmed the need to think outside the walls when seeking to bring Jesus to many in our world today.  This was an expression of church.
• Before and after that meeting Tina and I individually stopped in to check on our neighbor who had been the victim of a violent crime the previous day.  We listened to them talk about their feelings.  We prayed for peace and protection to reign over their home.  Tina arranged to bring them dinner the next evening.  This was an expression of church.
• Saturday morning I went for a bike ride with four other men from our home church.  Conversations happened along the trail and over coffee at the turn-around point.  Some were light.  Some were more serious in nature.  One group member expressed how the bike ride was not what made this time important.  It was the relationships being built.  This was an expression of church.
• Sunday morning we attended our regular worship service at of our home church.  We worshipped together.  We read scripture together.  We prayed together.  Many listened to the teaching upstairs while our family helped with the children's ministry downstairs.  This, of course, was an expression of church.
• That afternoon I went along with four friends to partner with a new ministry that brings food and other necessities to several of the tent cities near downtown.  We assisted with their physical needs.  We listened to their stories.  We listened for opportunities to help them take small steps out of their current situations.  In those we served I could see the face of Jesus as we helped some of the people he cares about most: "the least of these."  We prayed for their needs.  We had great conversation about mission in the van between camps and on our way back home.  This was an expression of church.

In some ways, all these various ways to think about how we experience "church" are not really new.  They're grounded in some of the earliest experiences of the followers of Jesus.  The end of Acts 2 gives a picture of what church life was like for the first century believers and it parallels much of what I experienced over this 4-day period:

"And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved." Acts 2:42 - 47 (ESV)

Perhaps it's time to expand our thinking about our idea of what it means for the doors of the church to be open.  If we listen to the Spirit and open our eyes to the places He may lead us, we may find that He is opening many more doors than we originally expected and we have the opportunity worship and serve Jesus in settings we may never have thought of before.

Jesus and Bad Religion

Last week, one of the students I work with at our local high school wore a t-shirt for the punk band Bad Religion to school.  I didn't think much of it until one of the other staff members brought it to my attention.  The logo on this shirt featured a skeleton dressed in a nun's habit with an upside down cross hanging around it's neck.  Though I could see how the logo would have been offensive to some, especially Catholics, there was something in the design that resonated with how Jesus viewed shallow religion without substance.

The more I thought about the symbolism of the shirt, the more it reminded me of the words of Jesus to the religious leaders of His day:
“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity.  Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness."  Matthew 23:27, 28 (NLT)
Jesus isn't interested in outward religious appearances.  He cares about what is going on inside.  If we engage in a bunch outward religious activity without letting it transform our hearts, we are like a skeleton wearing religious garments.  All we have, then, is dead religion.

I doubt I'd ever be able to totally embrace the punk and death metal my young friend listens to, but his desire for something authentic is what I've come to appreciate about him.  When he talks about his favorite bands and the things he cares about, you can hear in his words a desire for something that goes beyond the shallow, superficial life many in our culture settle for.  My hope is that one day he'll have a real encounter with the One who came to give us real life, not dead religion.  I also hope that he will inspire others on a similar quest.