Uncertainty

Uncertainty is an interesting word. It's being thrown around a lot lately. Whether you are listening to economists or a report from Wall Street, messages are couched with uncertainty. I'm not surprised by the fact that uneasiness trickles down from the macro to the micro level. I detect quite a bit of uncertainty in and around the lives of people that I care about. We are experiencing change in our world at an unprecedented rate. There is no way to anticipate change that happens so rapidly. But, forecasting and anticipating is not the same as preparing. I believe we can prepare for change, as well as uncertainty. Consider the fact that God is not surprised by anything that occurs in our lives. The Bible reassures us that God has known us since before we were born. Eugene Peterson comments on that fact:

Thius realization has a practical result; no longer do we run here and there, panicked and anxious, searching for the answers to life. Our lives are not puzzles to be figured out. Rather we come to God who knows us and reveals to us the truth of our lives. The fundamental mistake is to begin with ourselved and not God. God is the center from which all life develops.

This knowledge transfers our attention from the uncertain to the certain. We respond to life only after looking to the Source of life.

Let you light shine

In the beginning of 2009 I discerned a challenge that was gaining ground in my heart. The challenge was simple, "get out more". I gave a simple challenge to the congregation. Find a way to do what we do at a location other than the church. I am thrilled with some of the creative responses to that challenge. A segment of our men's bible study meets at a Mexican restaurant on Wednesdays evening. Our Youth have been doing a monthly service at the Civic Center. This week we did Vacation Bible School at the outdoor amphitheater at the Civic Center. Sunday Night we will have an outdoor concert there. One of my most meaningful reflections from this week has more to do with people who didn't register for VBS than the beautiful children who attended. It is from people who were all around the VBS celebration. I am talking about people who were jogging on the walkway, visiting the playground, enjoying a picnic in the grass, wandering around the Civic Center facilities. One lady shared with our registration volunteers that she enjoyed walking around each night and hearing the great music and celebration. What an obvious, but obvious benefit to getting outside of the church "building" and living as the church in our community. Sometimes we read the words of Jesus and overspiritualized them so much that we forget how they apply to the everyday life of the church. When Jesus taught us to shine as a light, He taught us that it is ridiculous to cover our light up and hide it. Sometimes we believe we shine the brightest on Sunday mornings while we worship as a congregation. But, that doesn't make sense does it? Sunday morning worship is very important to me. It is a great time to gather for corporate worship. But, let's not kid ourselves into thinking that it is our time to shine. We need to get out from under the roof of the church to really shine. My heart is filled with gratitude for every child, teen and adult that was shining brightly this week. Great job!

VBS Unleash the child within

What is it about VBS that brings out this explosion of creativity and energy? As expected, this has been an exciting week. I love the VBS experience. I love watching kids come together in worship, activities and a creative learning environment. This year, Pastor Dan and Penny have raised the bar a bit by taking our VBS to the community amphitheater. It's been awesome. As much fun as it is to watch the kids, I get a big kick out of watching the adults. As strange as it may sound, we are at our best at VBS. It's not just the energy and enthusiasm that explodes each night. It is an expression of unselfishness. As I watch adults at registration, team leadership, music, skits, snacks, set-up/clean-up and a host of other responsibilities it is inspiring. Each one is giving for the purpose of helping kids experience God's love and joy. That's what makes it special. And that is why I say that the church is at it's best. Too often the church gets caught up in "childishness" instead of the "child-likeness" that Christ talks about. The church, at it's best, unleashes child-like faith and service for the sake of others.

Vacation Bible School

What adventure awaits us this week? Vacation Bible School begins tonight. We are venturing out this evening to conduct our first VBS at the Oak Ridge Civic Center. I'm sure I will finish the week with great memories. I am excited about being at the Civic Center. It will be a different atmosphere altogether from our experience at Heritage. Loud music, lots of kids and a great message of God's love - the typical stuff of VBS will be there. However, I believe we will have an opportunity to share with kids and families that would not have ventured to the church. There are a number of reasons why some people are hesitant to come to the church, even to VBS. One of our primary messages in VBS will not be written in the printed material or a take home Bible verse. It will be written by our feet. Making the effort to move toward people rather than expecting them to come to us represents a message that we tend to neglect. It is a message that was embodied in the incarnation of Jesus. He came to us and taught us "As the Father as sent me, so I send you".

The Church

In my previous post I noted that Timothy Keller draws attention to the individual and community aspects of the Christian life. And I left it hanging with a "more on this later" bailout. Much of the struggle of the church in America relates to the combination of these two aspects. Can they work together? In his book "Building the bridge as you walk on it", Robert Quinn describes what he calls "Detached Interdependence". I love his description. Quinn writes, "This person combines Independence and strength with humility and openness". While not all of Quinn's comments are directly applicable to the Christian life, he raises a good point about the combination of the individual and the corporate life of the church. We struggle to combine strength of character with the warmth of a humble spirit. We also find it difficult to mix personal accountability with the connectivity of authentic relationships. Yet, the church is a living body defined by relationships and personal integrity. It's not meant to be easy. It reminds us of our need for God's help. That seems to me to be the rub in the church today. We try to "do" church without acknowledging the defining and enabling power of God.

The Church

Lately I have been reading about the "church". There is plenty of material. I even participated in a panel discussion for a local TV show about the condition of the church in America. Commentaries abound. As I read some of the biting critiques, I give a painful nod and agree that we deserve a lot of what we receive. When I turn to the Bible I am encouraged by the commitment of our Lord to "build" His church. The foundation that Christ provides gives me hope and courage. But, it also reminds me that the church has been and is a building project. That means that there are always those bothersome signs..."pardon our mess, while we are under construction". For those of you who are less inclined toward material building, think about arriving at a website and receiving the "site under construction" message. It's always a bit annoying when you expect one thing and meet with delay. Welcome to the church. Timothy Keller (The Reason for God) writes, "becoming a Christian always has both an individual and a corporate aspect". When I read Keller's comment I was struck by the fact that we have sometimes have a different perspective on God's grace for our individual journey than we do for the corporate journey. More on this later.