In my line of work, volunteers and volunteer “care” is something that I interact with on a regular basis. So, when I volunteer, I am doing the job and analytically looking at how things go. Recently, I got a great lesson that every leader that leads any level or amount of volunteers needs to recognize.
The reality is this:
No one cares if they are a volunteer or a staff person, so as a leader, they need to know you are on their side. Continue reading
Yesterday’s post and some other variables have contributed to me really analyzing what I call the church. My job is focused on developing relationships with students and leaders and to help coordinate the programs that are directed toward students and more specifically, high school students. That seems trivial to describe it that way, but I’ve been pretty convicted, lately, on the word “church”.
I, like so many others, would say, “I’m going to the church to meet (fill in the blank).” And it seems like nothing to say that that way, but it means a ton when it jades our view of what the church actually is and how important my view of the church changes how I view the church.
See, of my biggest concerns from yesterday’s post, at the top of that list is a fear that we (younger generations) don’t see the importance of the entirety of the Church. We dismiss the older generations that have relegated themselves to “rules” and “legalism” and fail to experience “grace” and “genuine recognition of their lives.” And the reality is, the moment that I dismiss or even begin to show resentment for that group of people, is the moment that I am the exact person that Paul is speaking about in 1 Corinthians 12 when he talks about dividing the parts of the Body and not finding purpose in being joined to differing parts.
The reality is, the Church is no building. That was a major point to Jesus’ theology as he preached and began to describe his death, resurrection, and Second Coming. When Jesus clears the temple courts in John 2, he specifically says that he can prove his authority by raising up the temple again in three days. The point was, the teachers thought he was talking about the building when he actually was talking about his Body. Later, Peter will relate this temple that is being built up as the people of God, the Body of Christ, into the completed temple that is being rebuilt.
The point of all this is, I’m convicted to end my careless use of a word that is meant to describe something that is infinitely more powerful, uncomprehendingly transformative, and unequivocally more grace-filled, than some empty, groupings of bricks, mortar and metal. The Church is you and me and my grandparents and your cousins and our friends and the homeless man and the girl from Taco Bell.
So, I’ll see ya at the ministry that I work at. Stop by. I’ll be glad to meet you there.
Honestly, I have no idea why this is a big deal to me right now. And I really don’t think this is going to make my life, or anyone else who talks to me about the building, any easier or more accurate. But, I do know this- I want my love for Jesus and my love for his Church to permeate from my soul and my character. And apparently, this is that God wants to challenge me. So, I figured I would share!
What about you? What words are you using to describe things that perhaps should be a different way around?
I have been watching the latest viral Christian YouTube video blow up Facebook and Twitter and have been pretty amazed with how quickly this one is popping up and with whom it is popular. The video I am talking about is here:
Let me say it, right away, there is a ton in this video. I affirm a lot of the thoughts that this guy raises in this poem/video. The desires of Jesus was for His followers to have a relationship with Him and to pursue that relationship. In doing so, the Church would grow and ultimately be completed by the work that Christ was doing in those relationships.
But I wonder the motives behind all the re-posts, the many emotional proclamations of affirmation, that I have seen around social media. It is media like this one that attempts to lay out a ton of truth, creatively and in doing so, leaves out definitions and blatant biblical points that would refute the very argument being made. And we humans have an innate ability to spin it up and mess it up and take it to heart without seeking the Spirit and allow it to divide us. I can’t tell you how many blog posts I have seen surrounding this video, breaking down its theological flaws and doctrinal mishaps. And some of them have a point. There are a number of theological and biblical flaws to this guy’s argument. But, in all honesty, that’s really not the problem that I have with the popularity that seems to surround this piece of creative outcry.
These “fake” people the author talks about, who are they? And maybe the better question is, who do you identify them as? I ask that question because I know what went through my mind when he started talking about all of that stuff.
My mind didn’t jump to Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. And my mind didn’t jump to David and the facade that came crumbling down at the words of Nathan. And I didn’t start to think about the Rich Young Ruler that Jesus interacts with that clearly is putting on a face for the world. And I didn’t think of Simon the Magician who wants the Holy Spirit and a relationship with Christ so that he can become famous again and do amazing works. I didn’t start thinking about those people.
No, I started thinking about people who are in my midst right now. People whose lives I could look on and make judgement about their heart. Sure, that’s sinful and wrong and not the point of the video. But you did it too. Because you are human and together we cannot possibly comprehend the infinite beauty of the Grace of God that truly is the ocean of Grace that the Church embodies, let alone exercise an appropriate amount of it toward the rest of mankind.
I get frustrated with what I think Jeff wants to identify as Religion as well. Namely, what many of us would identify as Sunday Christians (those that attend a worship service and follow certain “rules” to feel better about themselves.). What frustrates me more, is when my remorse and emotion toward Religion gets intertwined with my passionate love for the Church. And maybe that’s the problem. In my zeal against Religion, I lose my compassion for those that are caught in it. I find myself despising the person that settles for the feel good message and the 3 points to a better life and forget that my mission is for them as well. I hate Religion, but I am commanded to love the religious.
Have we ever stopped to think, critically, about those people that our mind drifts to when we start thinking about the religious? Can we possibly even begin to recognize the many variables that probably go into their stagnation and supposed in-authenticity? The fear of opening up? The hurt that one has already experienced? The history that illustrates the story of a persons life? Have we ever stopped to consider some of these variables? I know I don’t usually stop.
Something to think about. Something I intend to talk about more in the coming days and weeks.
Perhaps the reason there fails to be an ocean of Grace in the midst of our Churches is because of our own inability to extend it to those who need it inside our own Body?
Wanted to let you know about some pretty cool things that are out on the web that YOU can check out:
My church has organized a fantastic effort to share stories, scripture, and unite the family through a little blog called “PROMISES.” Each day, I think, there is a new post that goes up from someone inside the Church. It’s pretty cool and I love what it does for connecting our church body. If you are a part of that NMC family, be sure to check it out and maybe even share your own!
The Pursuit 