A friend of mine, Annette Vanover, is the manager/director of Focus: HOPE one of the leading voices for reconciliation in the Metro Detroit. I was pleasantly surprised to learn several weeks back that she attends the church where I'm currently on staff. After one of my sermons she came up to me and said, "I think you and I might have a lot in common." To which I wanted to say, "I doubt it very much." Little did I know prior to this conversation that she's been working for years to bridge the economic and ethnic gaps that exist in the Detroit and Metro-Detroit area.
The website for Focus: HOPE is www.focushope.edu
I think you will find their mission noble and redemptive. It makes me wonder how many other people slip in and out of our building every week who are also Kingdom lights for reasons that are pure.
---
For what it is worth.
Lipscomb University stepped up and made a great decision for their Presidency vacancy. I can say as a soon to be alum (as in one week) that I am excited about supporting the school, both undergrad and grad, in the future.
I know the Religion Department is probably excited as well. Lipscomb is making a move to be more Kingdom oriented and less instiution focused--this is a huge, and probably painful, step in the right direction.
29 July 2005
23 July 2005
Mike Robinson: aka "Slim"
I am going to brag on my roommate from college for a few moments...Mike Robinson. Mike was a two time All-American basketball player at Rochester college. He's the all-time leading scorer in the history of the school and one of the best all around basketball players I've ever been around. He's an ever finer man.
When I was playing at RC with Mike, I worked for the Detroit Pistons doing camps and clinics. I worked with several followers of Jesus while employed by the Pistons--in fact, it was one of the most formative experiences I've had so far. I tried so hard to convince Mike to join the staff of camp and clinic instructors. "C'mon Mike. You get travel all over, work with the Piston players and coaching staff...it will look great on your resume."
My boss, the director of the entire program, made it known that Mike had an open invitation to join the staff. He would have been paid well and would probably be in a top-tier position had he accepted.
Mike knew what he wanted to do however. Mike wanted to completely concentrate on getting his degree (the first Robinson to get a college degree) and preparing himself to continue to play basketball professionally.
Today, Mike is a social worker for Wolverine Human Services in downtown Detroit. Mike carries 10-15 kids on his case load. He helps bring peace and stability in the lives of kids who've been plagued by chaos and deception. Sometimes Mike has to pick these kids up at their house, help them with clothes shopping, etc. He often pays out of his own pocket to feed and clothes "his kids." I joke with him that this is the group of disciples God has given him.
I spent yesterday with Mike down at the Social Services building with my father-in-law Patrick (www.tentpegs.blogspot.com), encouraging the kids and dialoguing with them one on one about their life, career dreams, talents, etc. Patrick and I are going to try and form a connection between our church (Rochester) and the work of these ministers in the trenches.
Mike could have went into many different fields. But he has the heart of servant and that heart led him to leading a group of teens who've had so many choices made to them and for them that most of us never experience. Two of the girls we spent time with yesterday recently lost their mother's to drugs and A.I.D.S....they're fifteen years old with no father figures.
Living with Mike for four years radically changed the way I look at life, Christianity, and the Gospel. My vision of Jesus was completely altered after seeing the world through Mike Robinson. He's been a dear friend for seven years now. The Kingdom breaks into my life in some of the most unexpected and unassuming ways.
Mike is a black man from the inner city and I'm a white man from the burbs. In Christ though, our bond is stronger than race, socio-economic backrgound, or ethnicity.
What Kingdom person is the LORD placing in your life?
When I was playing at RC with Mike, I worked for the Detroit Pistons doing camps and clinics. I worked with several followers of Jesus while employed by the Pistons--in fact, it was one of the most formative experiences I've had so far. I tried so hard to convince Mike to join the staff of camp and clinic instructors. "C'mon Mike. You get travel all over, work with the Piston players and coaching staff...it will look great on your resume."
My boss, the director of the entire program, made it known that Mike had an open invitation to join the staff. He would have been paid well and would probably be in a top-tier position had he accepted.
Mike knew what he wanted to do however. Mike wanted to completely concentrate on getting his degree (the first Robinson to get a college degree) and preparing himself to continue to play basketball professionally.
Today, Mike is a social worker for Wolverine Human Services in downtown Detroit. Mike carries 10-15 kids on his case load. He helps bring peace and stability in the lives of kids who've been plagued by chaos and deception. Sometimes Mike has to pick these kids up at their house, help them with clothes shopping, etc. He often pays out of his own pocket to feed and clothes "his kids." I joke with him that this is the group of disciples God has given him.
I spent yesterday with Mike down at the Social Services building with my father-in-law Patrick (www.tentpegs.blogspot.com), encouraging the kids and dialoguing with them one on one about their life, career dreams, talents, etc. Patrick and I are going to try and form a connection between our church (Rochester) and the work of these ministers in the trenches.
Mike could have went into many different fields. But he has the heart of servant and that heart led him to leading a group of teens who've had so many choices made to them and for them that most of us never experience. Two of the girls we spent time with yesterday recently lost their mother's to drugs and A.I.D.S....they're fifteen years old with no father figures.
Living with Mike for four years radically changed the way I look at life, Christianity, and the Gospel. My vision of Jesus was completely altered after seeing the world through Mike Robinson. He's been a dear friend for seven years now. The Kingdom breaks into my life in some of the most unexpected and unassuming ways.
Mike is a black man from the inner city and I'm a white man from the burbs. In Christ though, our bond is stronger than race, socio-economic backrgound, or ethnicity.
What Kingdom person is the LORD placing in your life?
19 July 2005
I've blogged about Brian and Lisa Cain in the past but want to bring up their work again. On Wednesday NPR is doing a feature story on their work and ministry with God's Helping Hands a ministry to the poor of Oakland County with the Rochester Church(see http://www.ghhmichigan.org/).
Brian and Lisa started a clothing and food ministry from a small room in the Rochester Church building almost 8 years ago after enduring many moments of pain and confusion in dealing with the severe illness of their son Kevin. Kevin died at a young age--the funeral was one of the most "gospel" moments I've ever been apart of.
Since Kevin's death, the ministry has become one of the great witnesses in Oakland CO. They've moved God's Helping Hands from the church to a warehouse that borders Rochester and Pontiac.
Last Wednesday, for example, GHH fed almost 80 families (not people BUT families) in 3.5 hours. We're now beginning the process of dreaming of what might be done next to expand the ministry.
Tomorrow morning, reporters from one of the most respected radio programs in the country will be interviewing Brian and Lisa. People will be coming out of the woodwork to be a part of this day. I can't help but think of all the late nights and early morning Brian and Lisa have spent at that warehouse, getting things ready, sorting through the scraps of the rich in order to bring some light into rather dark lives.
I've spent thousands of dollars on a undergraduate degree in History and an M.Div but am just now learning what it means to be an outpost of God's Kingdom in the midst of overwhelming evidence that would suggest the only Kingdom in control is the one under the direction of the principalities and powers.
Brian and Lisa started a clothing and food ministry from a small room in the Rochester Church building almost 8 years ago after enduring many moments of pain and confusion in dealing with the severe illness of their son Kevin. Kevin died at a young age--the funeral was one of the most "gospel" moments I've ever been apart of.
Since Kevin's death, the ministry has become one of the great witnesses in Oakland CO. They've moved God's Helping Hands from the church to a warehouse that borders Rochester and Pontiac.
Last Wednesday, for example, GHH fed almost 80 families (not people BUT families) in 3.5 hours. We're now beginning the process of dreaming of what might be done next to expand the ministry.
Tomorrow morning, reporters from one of the most respected radio programs in the country will be interviewing Brian and Lisa. People will be coming out of the woodwork to be a part of this day. I can't help but think of all the late nights and early morning Brian and Lisa have spent at that warehouse, getting things ready, sorting through the scraps of the rich in order to bring some light into rather dark lives.
I've spent thousands of dollars on a undergraduate degree in History and an M.Div but am just now learning what it means to be an outpost of God's Kingdom in the midst of overwhelming evidence that would suggest the only Kingdom in control is the one under the direction of the principalities and powers.
18 July 2005
4 years and a few states later...
This weekend Kara and I celebrated our first year of marriage...I can't believe that the girl I was so nervous about asking to go to a movie is now my wife of one year. More than that, I can believe she actually said "yes" that hot summer day almost two years ago.
Kara and I have been on quiet an adventure. We started out "courting" long distance; while I was going to school and playing basketball in college she was at a university in Nashville. Then I moved to Nashville to do seminary (really to be closer to her...the seminary I wanted to go to was in California). Then I convinced her to move to Texas while I continued graduate studies and coached basketball at ACU for a short time. Then we moved back to Nashville right after getting married to finish our studies (at least for now). Then, you see where this is going, we moved back to Rochester so I could work at the RCC and teach religion (adjunct) at Rochester College.
I've taken Kara on a whirlwind over the last three years. We've learned a lot about eachother and even more about ourselves. It might be cliche but it is still true: the greates test of one's discipleship is the strength of their marriage.
Kara and I have been on quiet an adventure. We started out "courting" long distance; while I was going to school and playing basketball in college she was at a university in Nashville. Then I moved to Nashville to do seminary (really to be closer to her...the seminary I wanted to go to was in California). Then I convinced her to move to Texas while I continued graduate studies and coached basketball at ACU for a short time. Then we moved back to Nashville right after getting married to finish our studies (at least for now). Then, you see where this is going, we moved back to Rochester so I could work at the RCC and teach religion (adjunct) at Rochester College.
I've taken Kara on a whirlwind over the last three years. We've learned a lot about eachother and even more about ourselves. It might be cliche but it is still true: the greates test of one's discipleship is the strength of their marriage.
14 July 2005
GOOD NEWS
What is the Gospel?
What a great question. We've been talking about this all week in my Postmodern Theologies class with John Mark Hicks. I like the warning in Divine Conspiracy against "vampire Christianity"--the notion that Christians only want Jesus for his blood. We get Jesus' blood and then move on to Paul for the rest of consumer passions.
Think about the rich diversity of "gospel talk" in the four Gospels for instance. In Matthew, salvation is linked to the "ethical training for the kingdom of heaven"--the Rabbi shows his disciples how to live as outposts of God's future reign. In Mark, salvation is tied discipleship in a different way. Discipleship is participating in the shame (as opposed to Mel Gibson's "pain") of the cross. Those who would be a part of this New Band of Brothers/Sisters must be willing to embrace shame in light of a culture hinged on power and honor. In Luke, salvation is tied to the overturning of the dominant power systems--the poor are liberated, the capties are set free (it's not Blessed are the poor in spirit but blessed are the poor). In Luke we are introduced to a radical theology of neighbor: there is no one who is not our neighbor! In John, salvation is couched in the language of abiding in eternal life (John's word for Kingdom) and belief in "the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."
What is interesting to me is that the four Gospels are even more layered than what I've just presented. Each one presents a rather wholistic picture of salvation...and we haven't even gotten to Paul yet :)
I like this idea "people out of legalistic traditions need grace; people out of grace traditions need discipleship." I think that says a lot about where we're currently at in Restoration/Evangelical churches. The gospel doesn't just want to say something (our sins are forgiven) it wants us to live a certain way (we are empowered to be the Second Incarnation).
What a great question. We've been talking about this all week in my Postmodern Theologies class with John Mark Hicks. I like the warning in Divine Conspiracy against "vampire Christianity"--the notion that Christians only want Jesus for his blood. We get Jesus' blood and then move on to Paul for the rest of consumer passions.
Think about the rich diversity of "gospel talk" in the four Gospels for instance. In Matthew, salvation is linked to the "ethical training for the kingdom of heaven"--the Rabbi shows his disciples how to live as outposts of God's future reign. In Mark, salvation is tied discipleship in a different way. Discipleship is participating in the shame (as opposed to Mel Gibson's "pain") of the cross. Those who would be a part of this New Band of Brothers/Sisters must be willing to embrace shame in light of a culture hinged on power and honor. In Luke, salvation is tied to the overturning of the dominant power systems--the poor are liberated, the capties are set free (it's not Blessed are the poor in spirit but blessed are the poor). In Luke we are introduced to a radical theology of neighbor: there is no one who is not our neighbor! In John, salvation is couched in the language of abiding in eternal life (John's word for Kingdom) and belief in "the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."
What is interesting to me is that the four Gospels are even more layered than what I've just presented. Each one presents a rather wholistic picture of salvation...and we haven't even gotten to Paul yet :)
I like this idea "people out of legalistic traditions need grace; people out of grace traditions need discipleship." I think that says a lot about where we're currently at in Restoration/Evangelical churches. The gospel doesn't just want to say something (our sins are forgiven) it wants us to live a certain way (we are empowered to be the Second Incarnation).
11 July 2005
Nashvegas and Downward Mobility
I'm in Nashville this week finishing up the course requirments for the M.Div. at Lipscomb. This week I'm taking a Seminar in Theology class with John Mark Hicks who one of my friends in grad school refers to as "one of the smartest men in North America." Check out his blog at http://www.professingprofessor.blogspot.com/. The class is entitled Postmodern Theologies and we're going to look at post-evangelicalism (recovering fundamentalists), postliberals (recovering liberals) and communal praxis (the people who actually take Jesus' call to discipleship seriously)...ok maybe that was a slight exaggeration.
I'm taking this class with one of my good friends Mark Manry who is also finishing up the M.Div. this summer. Mark is a member where I currently work--the Rochester Church of Christ in Michigan. Mark is about to move his entire family to Uganda to join a mission team supported by the Rochester Church. I tease Mark that he's on the fast track for "downward mobility"--he's driving the wrong way down a one way street :). Seriously, Mark has a pastor's heart and will be Kingdom blessing while he's in Uganda and when we steal him back in five years to work with us at RCC.
The Rochester Church is not a perfect church by any measuring standards but they are committed to training up their own and sending them into the world. We currently have disciples (raised up from within our church) in Eastern Europe, Brazil, Uganda (a few families), Honduras, and one training to go to the Bronx to join an ACU mission team. I know I'm forgetting someone.
Our next step???? Getting the body of Christ at Rochester to see themselves as missionaries in the setting they find themselves in. Becoming a missional church out of a comfortable evangelical worldview is no easy task. I can't imagine a more exciting project than being a part of this.
I'm taking this class with one of my good friends Mark Manry who is also finishing up the M.Div. this summer. Mark is a member where I currently work--the Rochester Church of Christ in Michigan. Mark is about to move his entire family to Uganda to join a mission team supported by the Rochester Church. I tease Mark that he's on the fast track for "downward mobility"--he's driving the wrong way down a one way street :). Seriously, Mark has a pastor's heart and will be Kingdom blessing while he's in Uganda and when we steal him back in five years to work with us at RCC.
The Rochester Church is not a perfect church by any measuring standards but they are committed to training up their own and sending them into the world. We currently have disciples (raised up from within our church) in Eastern Europe, Brazil, Uganda (a few families), Honduras, and one training to go to the Bronx to join an ACU mission team. I know I'm forgetting someone.
Our next step???? Getting the body of Christ at Rochester to see themselves as missionaries in the setting they find themselves in. Becoming a missional church out of a comfortable evangelical worldview is no easy task. I can't imagine a more exciting project than being a part of this.
07 July 2005
Bonjour...ca va?
Not that anyone lost any sleep over this blog but I'm back bloggin again for the first time in a while. I am in the midst of getting my ministry off the ground at the Rochester Church of Christ, finishing my M.Div., serving my wife....and now a good friend (and running coach) has convinced me to train for a marathon with him. Let's just say I've been training for two weeks now and I'm incredibly soar...I know I'm being a baby.
In the future I intend to blog about
1. marriage to a wife whom I can't believe said "yes."
2. the poor
3. the Rochester Church
4. Rochester College
5. great books
6. great movies
7. great friends
8. politics
9. the Pistons
10. Running
11. The students I'll be working with at Rochester College in "Discovering the NT"
12. U2
13. Novels
I'll try to avoid postmodernity since it is the most abused word in all of contemporary christian jargon :)
To get things started, I'd encourage you check out ministry to the poor http://www.orion.lib.mi.us/ghh/home.htm
Brian and Lisa Cain (two disciples at the Rochester Church have an incredible ministry that is going to be featured on NPR in the coming weeks. I could not be more proud than to call them brother and sister.
If you are really bored here is the link to a sermon I recently preached at Rochester from Jeremiah 7. The manuscript is for speaking not neccessarily reading.
http://www.rochestercoc.org/sermonnotes.htm (click on June 12, and July 3 2005). I don't know if the multi media link is working or not for audio purposes.
I'll end with a quote from Dr. King that I'm still trying to embrace in my own life.
"I may not be the man I should be nor the man with Christ's help I will someday become, but thank God I am not the man I used to be."
In the future I intend to blog about
1. marriage to a wife whom I can't believe said "yes."
2. the poor
3. the Rochester Church
4. Rochester College
5. great books
6. great movies
7. great friends
8. politics
9. the Pistons
10. Running
11. The students I'll be working with at Rochester College in "Discovering the NT"
12. U2
13. Novels
I'll try to avoid postmodernity since it is the most abused word in all of contemporary christian jargon :)
To get things started, I'd encourage you check out ministry to the poor http://www.orion.lib.mi.us/ghh/home.htm
Brian and Lisa Cain (two disciples at the Rochester Church have an incredible ministry that is going to be featured on NPR in the coming weeks. I could not be more proud than to call them brother and sister.
If you are really bored here is the link to a sermon I recently preached at Rochester from Jeremiah 7. The manuscript is for speaking not neccessarily reading.
http://www.rochestercoc.org/sermonnotes.htm (click on June 12, and July 3 2005). I don't know if the multi media link is working or not for audio purposes.
I'll end with a quote from Dr. King that I'm still trying to embrace in my own life.
"I may not be the man I should be nor the man with Christ's help I will someday become, but thank God I am not the man I used to be."
20 May 2005
Kara and I are moving to Rochester, MI to work with the Rochester Church of Christ. We are excited to be working in a place that has so much potential for Kingdom growth. Kara will be doing her hospital internship requirement to be a certfied R.D.
I plan on changing the format of this blog-site. Once I get to Rochester and begin teaching adjunct at Rochester College, I'm also going to use this site for the students who will be in Introduction to the New Testament-section two.
Shalom.
I plan on changing the format of this blog-site. Once I get to Rochester and begin teaching adjunct at Rochester College, I'm also going to use this site for the students who will be in Introduction to the New Testament-section two.
Shalom.
29 April 2005
Silenced
I am not going to post for awhile...I have been blown away by reading much on the Open Door Community in Atlanta, GA (see http://www.opendoorcommunity.org/)
Save the time from reading my posts (if anyone does) and the many other blogs that are out there and read what people are actually doing not simply saying.
http://www.opendoorcommunity.org/-in case you missed the link, you will be a truer disciple if you read what these disciples are up to. Though some might not agree with certian positions one would be crazy to ignore the prophetic nature of their ministry to those of us in comfortable wealthy clubs we are calling churches.
Save the time from reading my posts (if anyone does) and the many other blogs that are out there and read what people are actually doing not simply saying.
http://www.opendoorcommunity.org/-in case you missed the link, you will be a truer disciple if you read what these disciples are up to. Though some might not agree with certian positions one would be crazy to ignore the prophetic nature of their ministry to those of us in comfortable wealthy clubs we are calling churches.
19 April 2005
Against the Powers
Charles Campbell's Word Before the Powers challenges all notions of what it means to be a Jesus follower. His conviction is that Jesus is depicted as the God ordained prophet/teacher who did everything to resist, usurp, name, and expose the "principalities and powers" of darkness. Though he is not original with this idea (none of us are by the way) his particular approach of desribing the Christian life is compelling.
In resisting the powers we are truly following Jesus and we serve as foreshadows to the full inbreaking of the Kingdom.
One section in particular really transformed me this week. In resisting the powers of darkness, even if it means marginalization and death, we beging to witness tokens of Christ's resurrection.
In my own life, these glimpses of God's Shalom have often come on the streets of Atlanta among homeless people. Several months ago, for example, I was leading worship in the front yard of the Open Door Community, a Christian community that ministers with homeless people. A group of us were standing in a circle, holding hands, praising God amid the noise of rush-hour traffic...Then, as I looked around the circle, I noticed one homeless man waiving to me and pointing to himself, indicating he wanted to do something. I was surprised when I saw him, for the man can neither hear or speak, and normally he is very reserved. But there he was, urgently waving to me, requesting to provide leadership for the worship.
I nodded to him, and he stepped into the middle of the circle. Then, after bowing his head for a few moments in silence, he began to sign a hymn for us. It was remarkable, beautiful, like a dance. And while the rest of us didn't understand all of the signs, some of them were unmistakable, like the sign for Jesus on the cross. And we all knew the Word the man proclaimed through his dance. (pp. 123-24)
As easy as it is to name the powers at work (indiffernce, nationalism, materialism, and racism) I shudder to think of the ways in which I allow and encourage the powers and prinicipalities of darkness to ravage the ones Jesus identified with.
It is time for those of us doing theology and preaching to do theology that is concerned about the church and her witness in the world and not 3rd Century Ancient Roman bathroom construction, or depicting a God who wants to "increase our territory." Both reduce the Christian Story to a pitifall version of the Jesus on display in the Gosels and throughout the history of his church. Christ means a real and present hope for all people. Christ means change. Christ means ongoing transformation. Christ means the liberation of creation from the grip of death.
That is the music to which we all are invited to dance.
In resisting the powers we are truly following Jesus and we serve as foreshadows to the full inbreaking of the Kingdom.
One section in particular really transformed me this week. In resisting the powers of darkness, even if it means marginalization and death, we beging to witness tokens of Christ's resurrection.
In my own life, these glimpses of God's Shalom have often come on the streets of Atlanta among homeless people. Several months ago, for example, I was leading worship in the front yard of the Open Door Community, a Christian community that ministers with homeless people. A group of us were standing in a circle, holding hands, praising God amid the noise of rush-hour traffic...Then, as I looked around the circle, I noticed one homeless man waiving to me and pointing to himself, indicating he wanted to do something. I was surprised when I saw him, for the man can neither hear or speak, and normally he is very reserved. But there he was, urgently waving to me, requesting to provide leadership for the worship.
I nodded to him, and he stepped into the middle of the circle. Then, after bowing his head for a few moments in silence, he began to sign a hymn for us. It was remarkable, beautiful, like a dance. And while the rest of us didn't understand all of the signs, some of them were unmistakable, like the sign for Jesus on the cross. And we all knew the Word the man proclaimed through his dance. (pp. 123-24)
As easy as it is to name the powers at work (indiffernce, nationalism, materialism, and racism) I shudder to think of the ways in which I allow and encourage the powers and prinicipalities of darkness to ravage the ones Jesus identified with.
It is time for those of us doing theology and preaching to do theology that is concerned about the church and her witness in the world and not 3rd Century Ancient Roman bathroom construction, or depicting a God who wants to "increase our territory." Both reduce the Christian Story to a pitifall version of the Jesus on display in the Gosels and throughout the history of his church. Christ means a real and present hope for all people. Christ means change. Christ means ongoing transformation. Christ means the liberation of creation from the grip of death.
That is the music to which we all are invited to dance.
11 April 2005
My first ever blog came in the fall (I think October) about a good friend Mary Morris. Mary is the Director of Character Counts in Nashville and teaches in the Education Department at Lipscomb University.
Mary has a very dangerous form of cancer and has been battling its effects for nearly 10 months now. We are all hopeful, but we honestly have no idea what the next 2 or 3 months have in store. Yesterday, a small group of disciples gathered in a hospital holding room at Vanderbilt Hospital to praise, pray, partake of the Eucharist and listen to a short homily.
In the room: family members, two college students, the former governor of TN, many teriffic women who've made parenting an honorable vocation, several College professors and host of other people.
It is in the most Christian moments that the playing fields are leveled. Honor, power, and status mean nothing when Jesus' apprentices come together to practice authentic community. Mary spoke up and gave a stirring encouragement to us. At one point she said, "This is my family."
For me, the church is the greatest apologetic for the ressurection. Oh, I know it is also the greatest support AGAINST the ressurection as well. But in moments like the one we shared yesterday, I believe because I want to believe. You can have the ontological argument for God. You can have all of the proofs for the ressurection The Case For Christ can conjur. But me, I came to Christ and have been sustained by Him because of his dysfunctional band of brothers and sisters we call the broken body of Christ. For me, being a part of the church has been salvation through and through.
Mary has a very dangerous form of cancer and has been battling its effects for nearly 10 months now. We are all hopeful, but we honestly have no idea what the next 2 or 3 months have in store. Yesterday, a small group of disciples gathered in a hospital holding room at Vanderbilt Hospital to praise, pray, partake of the Eucharist and listen to a short homily.
In the room: family members, two college students, the former governor of TN, many teriffic women who've made parenting an honorable vocation, several College professors and host of other people.
It is in the most Christian moments that the playing fields are leveled. Honor, power, and status mean nothing when Jesus' apprentices come together to practice authentic community. Mary spoke up and gave a stirring encouragement to us. At one point she said, "This is my family."
For me, the church is the greatest apologetic for the ressurection. Oh, I know it is also the greatest support AGAINST the ressurection as well. But in moments like the one we shared yesterday, I believe because I want to believe. You can have the ontological argument for God. You can have all of the proofs for the ressurection The Case For Christ can conjur. But me, I came to Christ and have been sustained by Him because of his dysfunctional band of brothers and sisters we call the broken body of Christ. For me, being a part of the church has been salvation through and through.
05 April 2005
A Menorah from the Pope?
I've enjoyed hearing the many anecdotes that have surfaced in regards to the life of Pope John Paul II over the last few days. Tales of his love for poetry, skiing, philosophy, and hiking. The world needs to remember that before he was the Pope, he was a man with crazy dreams about life, love, and friendship.
One story in particular came during an interview with Larry King the other night. I forget the gentleman's name, he was the Pope's official orchestra director, but he developed a unique relationship with the man. A few details are important here. One, the Pope sought this man out because he lived in the Pope's childhood town. Second, this man is Jewish.
One of the director's sons recently recieved a menorah from the 16th century as a gift from the Pope. The director said this gift was typical of the nature of their friendship. Love, acceptance, affection-some call it incarnational, some call it being Jesus. I call it true to the nature of the Gospel. Living with people in a Gospel way as opposed to convincing people that the Christian faith is the sum of its rational arguments.
One of the pastors at the church I attend noted the incarnational nature of the Pope's ministry-being among the poor, hugging them, touching, looking them in their eyes, validating their humanity, seeing them as full persons.
There is much I don't understand about highly institutionalized relgions (of which fundamentalists sometimes tend to be the worst)but I do know that God can redeem them. I think Pope John Paul II was God's activity in the life of the Church universal among the world.
One story in particular came during an interview with Larry King the other night. I forget the gentleman's name, he was the Pope's official orchestra director, but he developed a unique relationship with the man. A few details are important here. One, the Pope sought this man out because he lived in the Pope's childhood town. Second, this man is Jewish.
One of the director's sons recently recieved a menorah from the 16th century as a gift from the Pope. The director said this gift was typical of the nature of their friendship. Love, acceptance, affection-some call it incarnational, some call it being Jesus. I call it true to the nature of the Gospel. Living with people in a Gospel way as opposed to convincing people that the Christian faith is the sum of its rational arguments.
One of the pastors at the church I attend noted the incarnational nature of the Pope's ministry-being among the poor, hugging them, touching, looking them in their eyes, validating their humanity, seeing them as full persons.
There is much I don't understand about highly institutionalized relgions (of which fundamentalists sometimes tend to be the worst)but I do know that God can redeem them. I think Pope John Paul II was God's activity in the life of the Church universal among the world.
01 April 2005
Camden
I spent my spring break with a group of students and one teacher (Phillip Camp) from Lipscomb in Camden, New Jersey. One of my best friends is doing his Ph.D. in Philadelphia (Westminster) and we worked with his church to somehow be good news for the six days we were there. Most people do not know this but Camden was recently voted the most dangerous city in the U.S. (U.S. News and World Report). It edged out Detroit, Houston, New York, and Los Angeles (and a few others).
Camden is actually an extension of Philadelphia--just across the river. It only has about 50,000 people. Buildings are abandoned, streets are occupied with trash. As we stood on the corner of one of the most dangerous parts of Camden I thought to myself, "This cannot be America." I've been to Trujillo, Honduras and Ocho Rios, Jamaica-but I expected poverty, despair and hunger.
Our group worked with "My Brothers Keeper"-a mission house run by a pentecostal church in which former addicts, pushers, and pimps come for food, healing, and restoration. Day by day, with prayer and community, they are made whole again. Real people with real pain. Not simply "lazy blacks/latinos" who don't want a better life. Men who've been overrun by institutional sin.
I wonder when our churches will start sending missionaries to Camden. I wonder when the churches in Korea will start sending missionaries to Detroit. Missiologists say (people who study mission contexts) that more Christians live in Asia, Latin America, Africa and Eastern Europe than in the West. This hasn't been the case for several hundred years.
I wonder when Christians will start to reclaim their identity as missionaries in a context that is hostile towards the claim of the gospel? Maybe those of us in vocational ministry (preachers, pastors, and counselors) should spend more time equipping the disciples than performing psychology; bad psychology at that.
Where the poor exist, Christ is present. Is the church spending time with Christ or with Caesar and the spoils of his empire?
Camden is actually an extension of Philadelphia--just across the river. It only has about 50,000 people. Buildings are abandoned, streets are occupied with trash. As we stood on the corner of one of the most dangerous parts of Camden I thought to myself, "This cannot be America." I've been to Trujillo, Honduras and Ocho Rios, Jamaica-but I expected poverty, despair and hunger.
Our group worked with "My Brothers Keeper"-a mission house run by a pentecostal church in which former addicts, pushers, and pimps come for food, healing, and restoration. Day by day, with prayer and community, they are made whole again. Real people with real pain. Not simply "lazy blacks/latinos" who don't want a better life. Men who've been overrun by institutional sin.
I wonder when our churches will start sending missionaries to Camden. I wonder when the churches in Korea will start sending missionaries to Detroit. Missiologists say (people who study mission contexts) that more Christians live in Asia, Latin America, Africa and Eastern Europe than in the West. This hasn't been the case for several hundred years.
I wonder when Christians will start to reclaim their identity as missionaries in a context that is hostile towards the claim of the gospel? Maybe those of us in vocational ministry (preachers, pastors, and counselors) should spend more time equipping the disciples than performing psychology; bad psychology at that.
Where the poor exist, Christ is present. Is the church spending time with Christ or with Caesar and the spoils of his empire?
20 March 2005
As we prepare to remember and reinact the passion of Jesus it strikes me how strange it might seem to many that a band of believers would suscribe to the following elements of the Christian faith.
1. That Jesus' cross now belongs to all of those who would dare to follow him.
2. To be Christian is to, in sense, denounce all other powers we've historically run to for identity and sustainment.
3. Life with the marginalized is not something the church plans--this is who the church is. Not because it is the natural response but because we take seriously the teachings and life of Jesus.
4. Our faith is not "successful"--it does not bring more wealth,power, or influence-- if it does it might not be the faith. Our faith is in a God who is moving the world to his own purposes. In fact, our faith looks quiet foolish when we get right down to it.
------
When I read the Gospels, this is the world I see it creating; a world radically different than the one we live in.
1. That Jesus' cross now belongs to all of those who would dare to follow him.
2. To be Christian is to, in sense, denounce all other powers we've historically run to for identity and sustainment.
3. Life with the marginalized is not something the church plans--this is who the church is. Not because it is the natural response but because we take seriously the teachings and life of Jesus.
4. Our faith is not "successful"--it does not bring more wealth,power, or influence-- if it does it might not be the faith. Our faith is in a God who is moving the world to his own purposes. In fact, our faith looks quiet foolish when we get right down to it.
------
When I read the Gospels, this is the world I see it creating; a world radically different than the one we live in.
18 March 2005
Besides a few of my seminary teachers, Barbara Brown Taylor has challenged my faith in ways I cannot explain. Here is an excerpt from The Preaching Life I used on Sunday at Woodmont Hills. She is a poet who writes as if words still matter a great deal.
God is not through with us yet. At our worst moments, both individually and corporately, we act as if that were so. We act as if creation had all been finished a long, long time ago, and encased in glass, where we may look at it through the grime of centuries but may not touch. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Holy Spirit still moves over the face of the waters, God still breaths life into piles of dust, Jesus still shouts us from our tombs. The deep river of revelation still runs strong from the fresh headwaters of its source to its jewel-encrusted banks in the heavenly city, with power to drench our dry days along the way. (From The Preaching Life)
The Spirit still moves over the face of the waters...blowing wherever it pleases.
God is not through with us yet. At our worst moments, both individually and corporately, we act as if that were so. We act as if creation had all been finished a long, long time ago, and encased in glass, where we may look at it through the grime of centuries but may not touch. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Holy Spirit still moves over the face of the waters, God still breaths life into piles of dust, Jesus still shouts us from our tombs. The deep river of revelation still runs strong from the fresh headwaters of its source to its jewel-encrusted banks in the heavenly city, with power to drench our dry days along the way. (From The Preaching Life)
The Spirit still moves over the face of the waters...blowing wherever it pleases.
08 March 2005
For Those Who Have No Voice
Part of my grad school experience has been sub teaching with the Metro Public School System. This of course is about paying Lipscomb, not some kind of “ministry training experience.” Recently I taught at risk at a large, well-known high school here in downtown Nashville. Vanderbilt sends a child-therapist over every Thursday to help these at risk kid’s deal with anger, depression, and hatred. Some of them talked about their fears of all the gangs-the BP’s, KP’s, Crips, Bloods, and KKK. After a few minutes of this, the therapist got the young men and women to talk about their personal lives. One young boy, a talented artist, spoke of not ever knowing his father. His mother works three jobs to pay the bills for him and his brother. He wants to drop out of school so his mother “don’t have to work to the bone every day and night.” A young girl sat next to him. She is 17 and has a two-year old daughter. She spoke of her hatred for her father. She said she wished he would disappear from her life. Said it would be better to deal with an absent father than an abusive father. Her mother doesn’t work and makes her take care of the house, her three younger siblings, plus her own two-year old daughter. The boyfriend/father is kept in the picture because “he got money and that’s the only thing I got going for me right now.”
Next to her sits a young African American male. He is shy but intelligent. He is not confident enough to look the therapist in the eye. After a few moments of prodding, he talks about the rage he keeps inside towards his mother. Seems she no longer wanted to be around. He’s never seen a picture of his father, let alone met him. One day, a few years ago, she dropped him off at his Aunt’s house and no one has heard from her since. He asks through his tears, “Why you think my momma don’t want to be around me?” The last girl at the table speaks up after a few moments of silence. She is a talent on the basketball floor, I’m later told. Last year, her mother (her idol) was killed by a drunk driver. No father to comfort her. Just like that-her life is flipped upside down. She lives with different family members, bouncing from house to house, grinding it out day by day.
I enjoy the various theories of the Atonement. Propitiation, reconciliation, justification, liberation—all the words that we wrestle with. But I’m challenged by the notion that all theories of the cross-its meaning for the church must be relational and communal. We cannot stay in the courtroom mentality, walking around declaring, “Aren’t we fortunate to have been forgiven.” Only to return back to life as usual. The Gospel knows nothing of life as usual. The Gospel is a revolution that is supposed to turn everything upside down-all aspects of life in the here and now. Most importantly the cross must change the way we think about those we live with and amongst. If Christ speaks on our behalf, is he not relying upon us to speak for those with no voice? The ones who’ve been dealt an UNO hand at the poker table. Does the cross not demand that we get over ourselves, our way of being Christian to follow Jesus as light into every dark corner of society? If God’s mercy does not cause us to be merciful, is it really the gospel that we’ve been claiming all along?
Next to her sits a young African American male. He is shy but intelligent. He is not confident enough to look the therapist in the eye. After a few moments of prodding, he talks about the rage he keeps inside towards his mother. Seems she no longer wanted to be around. He’s never seen a picture of his father, let alone met him. One day, a few years ago, she dropped him off at his Aunt’s house and no one has heard from her since. He asks through his tears, “Why you think my momma don’t want to be around me?” The last girl at the table speaks up after a few moments of silence. She is a talent on the basketball floor, I’m later told. Last year, her mother (her idol) was killed by a drunk driver. No father to comfort her. Just like that-her life is flipped upside down. She lives with different family members, bouncing from house to house, grinding it out day by day.
I enjoy the various theories of the Atonement. Propitiation, reconciliation, justification, liberation—all the words that we wrestle with. But I’m challenged by the notion that all theories of the cross-its meaning for the church must be relational and communal. We cannot stay in the courtroom mentality, walking around declaring, “Aren’t we fortunate to have been forgiven.” Only to return back to life as usual. The Gospel knows nothing of life as usual. The Gospel is a revolution that is supposed to turn everything upside down-all aspects of life in the here and now. Most importantly the cross must change the way we think about those we live with and amongst. If Christ speaks on our behalf, is he not relying upon us to speak for those with no voice? The ones who’ve been dealt an UNO hand at the poker table. Does the cross not demand that we get over ourselves, our way of being Christian to follow Jesus as light into every dark corner of society? If God’s mercy does not cause us to be merciful, is it really the gospel that we’ve been claiming all along?
16 February 2005
Speaking of Sin
It is all around us. At every turn, in every corner and in every place, high or low, sin is present in our world. It is easy to see its effects in the world around us if we’d just pay attention long enough to hear the voices of those being crushed under its oppressive force. In Africa, H.I.V. and A.I.D.S. are killing young people by the hundreds of thousands. In the Sudan, Muslims are slaughtering Christians, and Christians are returning the favor. The genocide is rooted in their tribal narratives- each is convinced that the other one initiated the mass murder. Each tribe is convinced God is on there side. Russia still hasn’t recovered from the painful transition of Communism to Democracy. For many, life has gotten worse. In China, it is estimated that there are close to 6 million missing women since the government sanctioned limit to children went into place. In other eastern countries, women are abandoned, aborted, or sold into sex slavery rather than be raised in the family in which they were conceived.
If we look a little closer to home, we know the consuming nature of sin. We’ve experienced it first hand. For some, institutional racism has gone underground making it more dangerous than fifty years ago. For others, life in a family of alcoholics has killed every ounce of life left after a childhood of broken dreams and broken bones. Nashville, the alleged belt buckle of the Bible belt, is one of the most racially divided cities in America. White, Black, Hispanic, and Middle Easterners know which part of the city is theirs, which schools, which neighborhoods, in which churches they are welcome. Sin is everywhere. If we’d just look, we would see it staring us right back in the eyes.
But we don’t have to go looking for sin do we? There’s enough messiness and rebellion in our churches at this very moment to talk about for ages. In the name of religion, many of you have been dehumanized and in the name of particular arrogance we have returned the favor. “Some of the worst things that will happen to you in life will either come from your physical family or church family,” (William Willomon).
Does the gospel have the power to transform this dark reality?
If we look a little closer to home, we know the consuming nature of sin. We’ve experienced it first hand. For some, institutional racism has gone underground making it more dangerous than fifty years ago. For others, life in a family of alcoholics has killed every ounce of life left after a childhood of broken dreams and broken bones. Nashville, the alleged belt buckle of the Bible belt, is one of the most racially divided cities in America. White, Black, Hispanic, and Middle Easterners know which part of the city is theirs, which schools, which neighborhoods, in which churches they are welcome. Sin is everywhere. If we’d just look, we would see it staring us right back in the eyes.
But we don’t have to go looking for sin do we? There’s enough messiness and rebellion in our churches at this very moment to talk about for ages. In the name of religion, many of you have been dehumanized and in the name of particular arrogance we have returned the favor. “Some of the worst things that will happen to you in life will either come from your physical family or church family,” (William Willomon).
Does the gospel have the power to transform this dark reality?
21 January 2005
Weeping for Katie
The first time I met Katie I was struck by several things. She was a beauty with few rivals. She was sharp, witty, with a refreshing sense of humor. She listened to people when they talked. She looked you in the eye, smiled and processed your own words, ideas, and life stories. She was not your typical beautiful girl. There was much to her. Too much for any one person to know.
I remember a prayer group (which she was a faithufl member) we held at my apartment my senior year of college. The two hours was filled with laughter, tears, deep questions, etc. Near the end, someone asked Katie to pray. I could not help but thinking "There is something inside her that is eternal, something so good."
A few months after this, we learned that Katie had a rare form of brain cancer. She's been battling for the last two plus years. She rode with Lance Armstrong to raise money for research. Last week, she literally picked herself off of the deathbed to marry her highschool sweetheart. Five days later (yesterday) she stopped breathing.
She's still alive to be sure, though in a form I cannot prove. Today, the Rochester College community mourns for the families, friends, and parents of Katie. "It seemed to me, you lived your life like a candle in the wind."
For all who have been ravaged by the chaos, disciples around the planet join you in your suffering and long for the day when this reality will pass away; when God will make all things new.
Please visit www.katiekirkpatrick.com for the life narrative of Katie.
I remember a prayer group (which she was a faithufl member) we held at my apartment my senior year of college. The two hours was filled with laughter, tears, deep questions, etc. Near the end, someone asked Katie to pray. I could not help but thinking "There is something inside her that is eternal, something so good."
A few months after this, we learned that Katie had a rare form of brain cancer. She's been battling for the last two plus years. She rode with Lance Armstrong to raise money for research. Last week, she literally picked herself off of the deathbed to marry her highschool sweetheart. Five days later (yesterday) she stopped breathing.
She's still alive to be sure, though in a form I cannot prove. Today, the Rochester College community mourns for the families, friends, and parents of Katie. "It seemed to me, you lived your life like a candle in the wind."
For all who have been ravaged by the chaos, disciples around the planet join you in your suffering and long for the day when this reality will pass away; when God will make all things new.
Please visit www.katiekirkpatrick.com for the life narrative of Katie.
15 January 2005
Following Jesus isn’t easy. I used to think it was. I used to think this religion thing was a piece of cake. Go to church a few times a week. Smile a lot and learn the right vocabulary, “good to see you”, “if I was any better I’d be you”. Any thinking person can jump into this culture and learn the jargon and the right ritual activity. Youth group activities, small group devo, Sunday afternoon trip to the nursing home…but only once a month…we have plenty of men to do the other Sundays. Easy. I thought being a follower of Jesus was like being an American. All I had to do was fulfill a few duties, a sorted amount of responsibilities: pay taxes, attend a Fourth of July party, memorize and repeat the pledge, love sports (after all sports is our true religion), listen to country music, partake of apple pie, wave a flag, know the Presidents from 1950 on, and, of course, remember the words to the Star Spangled Banner. See, that’s easy. Make a list, execute the list on a semi-regular basis and there I am-- a good ol’ American patriot. Now that’s a simple list.
Then I did a terrible thing several years back—I read the Gospels. I know, I know, why would someone who’d been raised in church his entire life (by a preacher no less) do a thing like that? Well, I figured that I should know why it was I told the church one balmy Michigan Sunday “I believe that Jesus is the son of God and I will follow him from this point forward. I choose to be baptized.” That’s quiet a confession you know. This isn’t just signing up for boy scouts, trying out for the football team: When I started thinking about it, this is a scary proposition. I’d rather be a fan of God. Jesus could be the mascot, the church could be the audience, and then I’d get my religious fix for the week. Or I could be an admirer of Jesus, reading a lot of books about him, learning more theological language to prove my spirituality. Or, better yet, I could become a believer of Jesus. I could memorize all the important passages (“for God so loved the world…”)—you know the good stuff. I’d have all the right answers. After all, having answers is easier than practicing sacrifice.
But when I read the Gospels, I realize there is cost of following Jesus. A young rich man who graduated suma cum laude from Vanderbilt approaches Jesus and declares his desire to join the movement. Jesus, to our surprise, tells him he’s not ready. “You don’t know what you’re getting into. You want to really be a part of this movement? Sell everything you have and give the profit to the poor. Only then will you be ready and fit to be a part of my new religion.” Ouch. So much for seeker sensitive.
I think this is why Jesus chose to speak in rabbinic parables, a familiar form of teaching with intentional, brief stories. Jesus knew the difficulty of the Kingdom message he uttered, and so he taught in a way the people could capture the cost.
Then I did a terrible thing several years back—I read the Gospels. I know, I know, why would someone who’d been raised in church his entire life (by a preacher no less) do a thing like that? Well, I figured that I should know why it was I told the church one balmy Michigan Sunday “I believe that Jesus is the son of God and I will follow him from this point forward. I choose to be baptized.” That’s quiet a confession you know. This isn’t just signing up for boy scouts, trying out for the football team: When I started thinking about it, this is a scary proposition. I’d rather be a fan of God. Jesus could be the mascot, the church could be the audience, and then I’d get my religious fix for the week. Or I could be an admirer of Jesus, reading a lot of books about him, learning more theological language to prove my spirituality. Or, better yet, I could become a believer of Jesus. I could memorize all the important passages (“for God so loved the world…”)—you know the good stuff. I’d have all the right answers. After all, having answers is easier than practicing sacrifice.
But when I read the Gospels, I realize there is cost of following Jesus. A young rich man who graduated suma cum laude from Vanderbilt approaches Jesus and declares his desire to join the movement. Jesus, to our surprise, tells him he’s not ready. “You don’t know what you’re getting into. You want to really be a part of this movement? Sell everything you have and give the profit to the poor. Only then will you be ready and fit to be a part of my new religion.” Ouch. So much for seeker sensitive.
I think this is why Jesus chose to speak in rabbinic parables, a familiar form of teaching with intentional, brief stories. Jesus knew the difficulty of the Kingdom message he uttered, and so he taught in a way the people could capture the cost.
10 January 2005
Father Joe
Tony Hendra has recently written a spiritual autobiography entitled Father Joe (www.tonyhendra.com). The book (ala Tuesdays With Morrie)is filled with power, grace, and wisdom. It is unapologetically authentic about faith, and all the monsters that come with such a journey.
Father Joe (a Benedictine monk) is Tony's friend, spirutal guide, and replacement father. Through substance addictions, loneliness and promiscuity, Father Joe remains the calm, truth-telling voice in a life filled with apparent success.
I'm not going to write anything (for real write) until much later in my life. Until then I will encourage others to read people like Tony Hendra who understand the complexity of the journey, the paradox that is "believing what is unseen to be more real that what is seen."
My father, unlike Tony's biological father, has always been open, honest, and humble. He is the hardest worker I know and the last one to ever tell you about it. He is a hero to his wife, three children, and one grandchild. But not the hero you might expect. A hero who goes unnoticed, unassuming. Steady as the seasons in Kentucky, my dad is a pure picture of what it means to be in Christ.
For Father Joe's (and Phil's) living every day with others on there mind, thank-you from those of us who are still addicted to our own lives. The ones who are convinced that this play called life stars us as the main actor, the center of the universe.
Father Joe (a Benedictine monk) is Tony's friend, spirutal guide, and replacement father. Through substance addictions, loneliness and promiscuity, Father Joe remains the calm, truth-telling voice in a life filled with apparent success.
I'm not going to write anything (for real write) until much later in my life. Until then I will encourage others to read people like Tony Hendra who understand the complexity of the journey, the paradox that is "believing what is unseen to be more real that what is seen."
My father, unlike Tony's biological father, has always been open, honest, and humble. He is the hardest worker I know and the last one to ever tell you about it. He is a hero to his wife, three children, and one grandchild. But not the hero you might expect. A hero who goes unnoticed, unassuming. Steady as the seasons in Kentucky, my dad is a pure picture of what it means to be in Christ.
For Father Joe's (and Phil's) living every day with others on there mind, thank-you from those of us who are still addicted to our own lives. The ones who are convinced that this play called life stars us as the main actor, the center of the universe.
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