I’m A Follower…

and I’m being followed.

I guess that’s how it works.

I can’t believe I caved to the twitter pressure.

Yesterday it was Rick, today Brother Maynard.

So I said, “what the hay,” or something like that, and signed up.

It remains to be seen if it will be something I figure out and use.

I am really disappointed that I cannot get a badge widget on WordPress.  However, for now, my RSS feed is at the bottom of my sidebar.

So go ahead, follow me.

More on Communities of Transformation

I’ll be away for a few days. My parents are coming for a visit. They leave before Sunday. I haven’t told them yet that we don’t attend church.

These quotes by Jean Vanier from The Broken:

The sense of belonging flows from trust: trust is the gradual acceptance of others as they are with their gifts and their limits, each one with the call of Jesus. And this leads to the realization that the body of community is not perfectly whole and cannot be, that this is our human condition. And it is all right for us to be less than perfect.

Helping each other,
growing in trust,
living in thanksgiving,
learning to forgive,
opening up to others,
welcoming them,
and striving to bring peace and hope to our world.

So it is that we come to put down roots in community – not because it is perfect and wonderful, but because we believe that Jesus called us together. It is where we belong and are called to grow and to serve.

(taken from The Becoming of G-d by Ian Mobsby)

God’s Will and Election

A.

“It is God who sets and removes the rulers of nations. We vote in obedience to His direction and then trust that the person chosen to lead the country is His plan for us.”

B.

“It is up to believers to discern which candidate best represents godly and righteous values and to pray and act accordingly. God’s will for our nation can be hindered by our failure to act.”

Which of these statements most accurately represents you?
Any related thoughts?

Just a reminder, be nice to each other in the comments.

Reviewing Music

Obviously a very subjective endeavor.

I have a couple of CDs that were sent to me for review.

Songs For A Revolution of Hope, Vol. 1

This CD is produced by Brian McLaren in collaboration with Tracy Howe and The Restoration Project.  It will appeal to those who can appreciate the folksy, beatnik vibe and lyrics that echo the themes from Brian’s book, Everything Must Change. It is certainly an alternative to happy, clappy worship music.

Tracy is the featured vocalist on most of the songs. She has a beautiful voice. The track that I would put on my playlist is entitled “Majesty and Power” (13) – lyrically, my favorite. Other tracks of interest were “Hymn of Remorse” (11) – a bit melancholy, but the chorus showcases Tracy’s vocals and “Let’s Confess” (8) – an interesting piece with good rhythm and a beat poetry feel.

Overall, not my cup of tea, but that’s just me. You can listen to various tracks here to see which ones you might enjoy.

Evensong Rising

Their specific ‘sound’ is a fusion of styles, from rock to bluegrass to reggae to jazz to soul. As Sorenson says: “You see, when you have three Jamaicans, a Celtic violinist, a rock drummer, a pop guitarist, and a lead singer from the south, together playing the music they love, Evensong Rising is what you get.”

The group leads worship at a church in Greenwich, CT. There is an eclectic mix of songs and styles on this CD.  The instruments are outstanding. I personally preferred the tracks that featured the female vocalists, such as “Stand Firm” (3) and “Make Us New Again” (6). The best place to preview the songs to see if they appeal to you is here.

Beyond their music, be sure to check out the causes that they are involved in.  They have partnered with The Rising Group to support Rise Up! – an initiative for spiritual awakening and humanitarian activism and Bread for the World – a Christian voice for ending hunger in the world.

More on Communities of Transformation

What do you think of this?

Find friends and form a family who are willing to see grace at work in another’s lives, who can discern together which gifts and which crosses each has been called to bear. Find people who have a holy respect for power and a holy willingness to spend their power alongside the powerless. Find some partners in the wild and wonderful world beyond church doors.

Andy Crouch, Culture-Making,  (ht David Fitch)

You try and you fail. You try again. You make room for one person at a time, you give one chance at a time, and each of these choices of the heart stretches your ability to receive others. This is how we grow more hospitable — by welcoming one person when the opportunity is given to you.

Daniel Homan and Lonni Pratt, Radical Hospitality
(ht Brad Brisco)

Review: Strange Fire, Holy Fire

“The spiritual gifts practiced in charismatic churches – including the controversial gifts – are legitimate and important.  Unfortunately, they can be abused and confused with hype, flesh, and misunderstanding.”
.

This book by Michael Klassen is a well-written and interesting addition to the post-charismatic library. With a fair combination of critique and validation, the author expresses the desire to bring balance and maturity to both the beliefs and practices of charismatics.

A Few Favorite Quotes

Spiritual Pride

“Over time, people who only indulge in charismatic influences tend to see reality through a singular charismatic lens.  We begin to believe that only charismatics have something significant to say to the church and to the world.”

History

“Claims of spiritual exclusivity lead people – and movements – down dangerous paths.”

“As we study church history, we discover that many of the challenges and false teachings we face today have appeared sporadically since the first Pentecost.”

Power

“The pursuit of the charismatic and Pentecostal is power.  The charismatic movement is more about power than anything.”

“In our pursuit of power we lost sight of Jesus.  We tried so hard to be used by him that we pursued Jesus’ power more than his person.”

Hype

“God doesn’t need someone to whip the crowd into a frenzy in order to pour out his Spirit.”

“The Spirit is already at work in our lives, regardless of anything we do to manifest his presence.”

Overview

Michael presents topics relevant to the charismatic movement in easy to digest chapters.  While not an indepth study of the issues, the chapters provide enough points of background and scripture to begin the process of reflection and discussion for those interested in examining their charismatic practices.

There are chapters covering authority, titles, and the cult of personality.  Others address specific practices such as tongues and personal prophecy.  There are also much-needed chapters discussing peculiar behavior and strange theology.

Because he is a graduate of ORU and former card-carrying member of the word of faith movement, I was interested in the author’s perspective on prosperity teaching, positive confession, healing, suffering, faith, God’s will, prayer, and spiritual warfare.  The chapters devoted to these topics were an accurate portrayal of the word of faith teaching that I have been around.

The chapter title Is It Okay to Pursue a Spiritual Buzz? caught my interest.  This chapter deals with the legitimacy of experiential encounters.  Not throwing the baby out with the bathwater, the author states, “experiences with God play a significant role in our life of faith,”  but they should not be the sole substance of our faith.  He goes on to explain that true transformation is not a quick fix, but happens over time as we know and abide in Christ.

Michael finishes the book with a look at the future of the charismatic movement and the hope for a new kind of charismatic where the distinctions fade and we are simply known as brothers and sisters in Christ.

Final Thoughts

Over recent years, I have come to many of the same conclusions concerning the charismatic movement that Michael describes in this book.  Those who identify themselves as post-charismatic will find this to be an enjoyable read.

I am curious to see the response of the charismatic community.  Hopefully rather than reacting or responding defensively, there will be ears to hear the message of this book.

You can read more about the book here at the Bethany House publishing site.
It is available for pre-order on Amazon.

Strange Economies

Sonja wrote in her blog action day post that Americans spend $450 billion per year on Christmas. She wrote about changes and relief that could happen with even a small portion of that sum. I thought about what would happen if we diverted that $450 billion and wondered about the impact on the economy.

We are headed into what is bound to be a smaller Christmas for most American families. In many ways this is good. Most of us realize that the consumeristic nature of Christmas is out of hand and that simplifying would be good. However, because we have created a culture of spending, many businesses are dependent on the Christmas fix.

Production is good for the economy. In the 30’s, money spent on infrastructure helped boost the economy. In the 40’s, money spent in the post-war recovery boosted the economy.

Over the past decade, the American economy has been built on the backbone of the housing market. Production in this sector was driven by demand for bigger and better homes. In other words, everyone moved up. No longer trapped together in 1000 square foot ranch style homes, we now ramble around in McMansions. But this was good for the economy.

In the 80’s and 90’s, it has been every man for himself. Somewhere along the way a sense of entitlement crept in and the American Dream became the American Perversion. Not only did everyone want the newest, most, and best, gosh darn it, we deserve it.

Is it possible to have an economy where spending to help others is good for the economy, where the production of goods and services benefits many rather than a few?

I wonder about the CEO’s who didn’t flinch at taking multimillion dollar severance packages while their companies were going under, who made sure that they got their golden parachute at the expense of shareholders, employees, and taxpayers. Or even those CEO’s of companies that aren’t failing who apparently believe they are deserving of such abundance before the employees and stockholders are considered.

I wonder about the politicians who make decisions based on self-interest rather than doing what is right for their constituents and for the nation as a whole. I wonder about politicians whose loyalty is purchased by lobbyists, special-interests, and potential future alliances. At what point is it okay to sell out the best interest of the nation in order to ensure your own power and bottom-line.

It would appear that greed and self-interest have so corrupted our system that it isn’t possible for either the free market system to function properly or for those responsible for government regulation to be trusted.

So what about the church? Surely the church can be trusted to steward wealth.  We could be trusted to provide for the needs of the poor in the earth rather than lining our own pockets first and indulging in self-interest and entitlement, right? If the church and ministries were entrusted with millions and billions, we would serve the poor, right?

Oh wait, we were entrusted with millions and billions.  What have we done?  It isn’t a matter of waiting for money to show up in the church.  It was already there.  It is and has been for decades.  We spent it on ourselves and called it ministry.

Communities of Transformation Follow-up

When I posted the last quotes, I wondered about the line between possibility and idealism.

Looking at the first quote, I believe it is important to develop a depth of knowing one another and grace for each other.  However, I think we also have to be aware of the expectations that we put on others, realizing that we can only be fully known and loved by God, and that He is the one who will raise us up in newness of life.

In the second quote – commitment, grace, sacrificial love – these are all biblical values of our relationships as believers.  Yet we haven’t been very effective at defining or expressing these values together.  It seems that attempts to do so have often made things worse, so we retreat to safer levels of interaction.

Complete safety is an unrealistic value.  In relationships with those we love the most, there will always be experiences of hurting and disappointing one another.  Even in our immediate families, it can take years of learning how to love one another well.

What does it look like to be in communities where we lay down our lives for one another?  Maybe we can only know by doing, failing, succeeding, and doing again.

To be honest, I don’t think that we can be at this depth of intimacy with very many people.  It isn’t hard for me to imagine these kind of relationships with a small group of “my people.”  But what about beyond that?

If we have community beyond our close circle, how do we provide places of intimacy for others that we may not be directly involved with?  How do we encourage vulnerability and risk with one another knowing the potential for damage?

It seems like the big questions have to do with expectations and dealing with our failures.  Personally, I tend to back away when I sense that I am incapable of meeting the needs or expectations of others.  What is my capacity to love?  What do I do when that capacity is exceeded?  How do I handle my failures in loving others?

A few random thoughts…

Point people toward Jesus for the fulfillment of their desires and needs.

Allow intimacy and relationship to grow naturally.

Be humble.  Take responsibility for failures.  Don’t give up.

Sorry if this was a little random.  These are the things that I’m thinking about.

I wonder if it is possible to create a community with a strong ethos of trust not only for ourselves but that is trustworthy for others.

Communities of Transformation

I wonder if this is possible.

Our communities are filled with people desperate to unburden themselves in the presence of another, to be known at a level where the only antidote to disdain is grace, to sink beneath death’s dark waters while in the grip of a set of strong hands that promise to raise them up into newness of life.

(abductive columns)

If we have no one we really trust, no one we can talk through our failures with then we are truly alone. It doesn’t matter what level of commitment we have to a group or organization.

One of the reasons why so many people find their way out of conventional churches is that they are lonely and disconnected in a sea of activity. For a long time they believed that sitting and listening was participating in community. They believed that being in a small group was being supported and loved. They come to sense a huge disconnect.

The heart of ministry is to be Jesus to one another. Too often we overload ourselves with activities that have value but have so captured our attention that they insulate us from each other. We avoid the heart of ministry because it is too hard.

We can’t flee from commitment to each other, we must give grace when we are harmed, and we must love when it is inconvenient. Becoming like Jesus is a sacrifice that most of us are unwilling to make and that is why we lack so much.

(The Heart of Ministry – Leighton Tebay)

I wonder if I am willing and able to walk with people at that level of commitment.

My First Day As An Episcopalian

(The opinions expressed by Betty do not reflect the views of the blog author.)

I’m not a member yet, but I did finally visit the Saturday evening service.  I’ve been wanting to go for a couple of months, but just didn’t get around to it.

Dan told a story on his blog about a person who called him about visiting his church. He said, “probably 80% of the people who say they will “see me Sunday” never end up showing.”

I can understand that.  It’s not easy walking into a church you’ve never been in.  If you psyche yourself up a little, it’s kind of a rush, maybe like skydiving, sort of, only without a parachute.

I didn’t really know anything about episcopalians.  What do they wear?  What will they do that I am clueless about?  Will I be able to blend in and follow along?

Similar to my last church visit, this one started with a drive by, not enough cars in the parking lot.  And like last time, I decided to go back and go anyway.  As it turns out, there were 8 of us at the service plus the priest.

I sat near the back and tried to be observant without gawking.  I noticed that people curtsied before entering their pew, but I don’t know why.  All of the pews had kneeling things.  I’ve never attended a church with those before.  I was afraid to try opening mine in case it would clank or something.  If I go back, I might kneel next time.

The service started with the priest going to the back of the sanctuary and ringing the old outdoor bell.  That was cool.  There was no singing in the entire service. It started with readings from the Book of Common Prayer.

Then there were four scripture passages.  The priest read the old testament passage standing at the front of the room.  Then he went and sat in a chair at the side of the altar and read the psalms.  Next a lady from the congregation read a new testament passage at the podium.  Finally the priest brought a shiny gold book to the podium and read from the gospels.

He had a good sermon about the wedding banquet.  This was followed by the Nicene Creed, prayer, and a litany.  Then people turned around to shake hands.  This was my only faux pas.  I said hi.  But it didn’t take me long to figure out that everyone else was saying peace.

The bulletin said that all baptized Christians were welcome to receive communion, so I decided that I would participate.  When it was time to receive communion, everyone went forward and kneeled at the altar.  The priest gave each person a piece of the broken bread.  Then he went down the line, and each person dipped their bread in the cup of wine, then returned to their seat.

This was followed by some silence, then a few more prayers and blessings.  Finally, the dismissal, “the worship has ended, let the service begin.”

My overall impression…It was nice.  I actually liked the idea of spoken worship rather than singing.  I liked the truth and depth of the liturgy, and I really appreciated the blessings spoken over us.  The prayers, scripture, and sermon all felt sturdy and solid.

I think the only question I have is what would it mean if I were to continue attending there.