Vision, Running, and the Church

So, I have started training to run a 5K. I know big deal huh? Well I am not a runner. I never have been. This is hard for me! So, I am building my endurance lttle by little by alternating walking and running. I was doing this the other day when I noticed something, the more I focused on trees, street signs, cars in the distance, the farther I was able to go without feeling nearly as out of breath.

I danced growing up, ballet, tap, jazz, modern. I was even in a dance company. I remember whenever we would turn or pirouette we would find a spot on the wall, in the distance, and that is what we fixed our eyes on, so that even in our spinning, we kept our momentum, we were able to remain steady, upright, and in motion.

In pondering these things I began to think of the church I serve. It is 116 years old and it has seen many changes and transitions over the years. For so many years it struggled to survive to the point that survival became the point of focus. The church has begun new growth in the last few years. New vision has been important to the direction and momentum that has begun to build and new vision, new focus will propel the church further forward even still. The key then is to constantly be looking up to what God is doing, to what God is calling us to next. Churches are not meant to exist forever, the Kingdom of God is. That is the vision that must propel the Church forward beyond any other vision, plan, or survival skills for that matter.

Permission to Speak Freely

Author Anne Jackson wrote a book by the same name as my title after posting something on her own blog about confession and transparency. Her beef was much the same as my own. The church is supposed to be a place that ministers to the most broken people right? I mean the church is the Body of Christ and Christ's living example was one that was regularly among the sinners, the tax collectors, the prostitutes,the blind, the deaf, the sick, the lame. The church should be a place where we call it like it is, where we can let our guard down, and love each other just like God loves us.

What are you afraid to say in church? Who are you afraid to be? I heard someone say recently that we make our Sunday worship and our small group meetings like the Christian Prom. We all dress up and have our nicest manners and exchange the usual pleasantries, but are we real, vulnerable, human beings? See if we continue to perpetuate the myth that we are these people that have it all together without a care in the world then those who would never darken the door won't. They have some misconstrued idea that they have to have it all together to be a part of such a community of people. In fact if we are each transparent about our own brokenness, frailties, temptations, other real people might want to be a part of that, but it starts with us. Someone has to go first. I confess my own ideas about who I had to be and how I had to be kept me away from any church for a long time. I thought I had to be a certain way, know the books of the Bible and where to find them, recite the Apostles Creed from memory, wear certain clothes....no wonder people don't want to come to church. Is that what it is all about?

The good news is we can all be real with each other, phew what a relief, and have the assurance that because we call Jesus Lord all that junk doesn't matter, whether it happened years ago or you are still struggling today. We can come to Jesus and come together and find real healing, and redemption, and restoration. We are all in process, in life, and relationships, in growing closer to God,in becoming a new creation because of what God has done through Jesus and by the power of the Holy Spirit.

So, who's going first?

"Glory Days"

Ahhh, the good ole days. We all have those tucked away in our memory banks, don't we? I love to remember my days as a cheerleader, homecoming princess, dancer, college journalist, etc. I was thinking about this the other day in light of a class I am taking and after a conversation I had with someone, that I confess led me to judgment of their wishes and understandings.

The Church is declining at a rapid pace and more and more doors are closing. Why? Unfortunately many are not meeting the people of their communities where they are. Times change, communities change, and contexts change. What was once a predominately wealthy upper middle class anglo community might today be much different. I learned about a church in Texas that a fellow classmate is a part of that has met the changes in their community with changes within the church. Unlike the many others that are still living the way they were, trying to do business as usual, in a brave new world and missing the boat all together, this church has responded to a changing community by changing. This church in Texas was planted in a predominately anglo, middle class urban area. They saw the church begin to decline as the demographics began to change over the years. Instead of trying to do business as usual they started a latino ministry to reach the growing latino population around them. This separate congregation would join the anglo church for special events such as baptisms, world communion Sunday, etc. They all were so encouraged and blessed by one another when they met together that they have worked to combine and now have a fully bilingual service. They sing and preach and worship in Spanish and English all together and the result has seen them grow exponentially in making disciples for Jesus Christ. Talk about a sign and a foretaste of the kingdom! Check them out here http://www.houstonvineyard.org/first_time.html

The biggest mistake we make in the church is looking back at the glory days instead of looking forward at future glory and how we are reaching and ministering to those in our midstin Jesus' name. Just because you have always done something one way does not mean you should continue to. Perspective is gained when we look outside our stained glass windows at the world outside and ask how is the church meeting the people outside the door on the street? True incarnational ministry models the example of Christ and meets people where they are, not where we are. We have to listen and understand what the hurts and hopes are in our community. We have to look for God's hand already at work and partner with Him to bring reconciliation and restoration. We have to be responsible stewards of the time and place and resources that God has given us to live and move and breathe in.

I read something the other day that has stuck with me. It was something to the effect that for a church to remain the same and thrive it would have to be in constant change. Makes a world of sense to me!

I believe the glory days are yet to be!

Leading Change

I am feverishly reading an additional five+ books for the class I finished last week. The class is "Leading Change" and addresses organizational and leadership transitions and how to navigate and lead them effectively. In life and in the church we often get comfortable with routines and ways of doing things, so much so that we stop noticing things we might have noticed before.

When I was getting ready this morning I opened the drawer in my bathroom that holds my makeup and brush. My 7 year old came in asking if she could use my eyelash curler. I almost warned her to hold the drawer carefully when she opened it, if she didn't it would fall out, but she already knew. I remembered when it first broke. I made the adjustment, tightened the screw, and it held for a day, but the screw had stripped the wood and the bracket that held it in place would not stay attached. I think I fixed it one more time and it held for a day, then broke again. I am ashamed to admit that was probably 2 years ago. I have gotten used to holding it in place. I don't even notice or think about it any more...well until today. It bothered me that my acceptance had led to the acceptance of my daughter. When had it become routine?

We are like this with a lot of things in life and unfortunately the church seems just as likely to succumb to acceptance of how things are instead of working for changes that can mean transforming lives. We grow dull as time passes and accept things as they are rather than stepping back to change or fix what is not working.

Sometimes seeing things clearly takes seeing through the eyes of someone else, hearing the perspective of others, and making the necessary...GASP...changes.

New Year Goal Setting/Gaining Perspective

Well it is about that time. Have you started a list of goals for 2010? I think many of us need to stop to consider, to really get perspective, on the place in which we find ourselves first, before we start trying to head in a particular direction. We need to consider the distance, don't we? And how we might need to be prepared for the journey? Maybe how equipped we are where we stand and what "equipment" we might need to get there.

Many of us set some high and lofty goals without first pondering these things. Sometimes we are so deep down in it that we can't truly see "it" for what "it" is. (Trying not to get myself in trouble here).

Tony Morgan, a big deal in church leadership bloggged about how his own goal setting has changed in recent years in response to just how quickly our world is changing around us, frankly just how quickly everything is moving around us. He had this to say about goal setting and perspective,

"Do current trends suggest we’re moving in the right direction? If they aren’t, are you being honest about it or explaining away the numbers?
Do we have the right people in the right roles to help us move forward? I’d rather have the right people with the wrong strategy than the wrong people with the right strategy.
Are we focusing our time and resources on the right priorities? Honestly, I think most organizations can only handle one new project or initiative at any given time. Healthy organizations get everyone on the team pulling in the same direction to see that initiative through to success."

Frankly this made me think a lot about the Church. Far more doors are closing than are opening. How are we responding? What I am seeing from my little speck on the earth is a lot of right strategy and wrong people and vice versa. I am perplexed by the competitive nature within the church and the power struggle I see being played out. Don't get me wrong I do see people with real Kingdom vision, but I see others that would fight to stay in a place where they are not the best suited, to make a point. Where is the Kingdom in that? Isn't it about making disciples and growing the Kingdom? If someone else can do it better than you, then by all means let them do it! Equip them, support them, and set them free. It is not about me or you or my ministry or your ministry or my preaching or your preaching, it is about God and His Kingdom. The Scriptures tell us that as the body of Christ we are all uniquely gifted. When we use those gifts to His glory, when we give of them freely, we enable others to do the same. Do you have perspective on your gifts? How about the gifts of those around you? How are you giving of yourself in order to better empower others?

In the economy of the Kingdom, giving is giving. It is good. Me giving to you takes nothing away from me, but only adds to the fullness of the Kingdom. It is the picture of the Trinity. The world's economy of give and take is so much different. Why do we see this in the Church? Why the competition?

I hope this makes sense to someone. I feel like I am rambling. What can we do to change this? What kind of goals should we be setting for our churches? For the Church? How do we get there from here? And where exactly is here?