Morning Joy: When Will Morning Come?

I determined long ago to name this blog Confessions of a Confused Christian. However, as I recently went back over many of the posts, I realized there was not a lot of confessing or confusion. Every post seemed to always resolve itself into total assurance. It seemed as though there was no real faith struggle that every i was always dotted and every t was always crossed. I admit that some of the reasoning is because I switched my primary means of communication from this blog over to Facebook. However, even there, I could see that most posts talk about how great my faith is and an outsider may think my faith does not waver.

So, here I am pondering this moment of how deep to go; how much to share. It is difficult to use written words as a form of communication because it is impossible to sense the tone and emotion behind the words. However, since the blog has the words confused and confess in it, I feel it is only appropriate to confess my confusion. Sometimes I really struggle in my faith. I struggle in my relationship with God. I often do not see relevance in the church. When I read the Bible, I am often confused. I read of a church in the first century that seemed so honest, so real yet I see much of the church today being so superficial. I see people in the New Testament fighting for what they stand for, and I see so many Christians today fighting about what they are against. We rally and protest and get loud and rarely love, I mean truly love. We are well known for what we are against, but rarely show what we are for. That confuses me. Am I supposed to stand in a line and picket the abortion clinic, or am I to present a cup of water to a hurt woman who just made the decision to abort the baby? Which would Jesus do? If I show love to her am I now saying I support abortion? Must I yell and spit so I can prove I am a Christian or was Jesus actually telling the truth when he said they will know we are Christians by our love?

The truth is I am often confused. I have been hurt. I have felt abandoned and betrayed. I have been hurt by the church. I have bought the lie that I had to be against all the things I am supposed to be against and somewhere along the way I have forgotten what I am supposed to be for. I have often tried to please church people and in the process have found myself drifting further and further away from who God has truly called me to be. I have been hurt by the church. I have been hurt to the point that it is often difficult to differentiate if it is people or God who is hurting me. Why must it be so difficult?

One of my favorite verses has been Psalm 30:5 which declares, “For his anger lasts only a moment,but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.” What a comforting thought to know that joy comes in the morning. However, sometimes it seems that morning will never come. I often identify with the poet Emily Dickinson who penned these words: 

Will there really be a “Morning”?
Is there such a thing as “Day”?
Could I see it from the mountains
If I were as tall as they?

Has it feet like Water lilies?
Has it feathers like a Bird?
Is it brought from famous countries
Of which I have never heard?

Oh some Scholar! Oh some Sailor!
Oh some Wise Men from the skies!
Please to tell a little Pilgrim
Where the place called “Morning” lies!

Will morning joy ever come? Or will we just remain in tears of mourning? Will joy find it’s way into our lives, or are we destined to lie in constant wait? I confess that God confuses me and His word sometimes troubles more than it comforts. There are times in our lives when it hurts so much we just can’t see the joy coming. We feel the pain and experience the darkness which seeks to consume us. So we wait. We sit in the dark of night waiting for the morning joy to come. We long to feel anything other than the current hell we are experiencing. We look to God, even in the midst of what seems like His silence and we wait. We hope. We look toward that morning light which will bring the joy. However, in the meantime, we wait and search for the place where morning lies.

God's Dream team

The closing ceremony of the 2012 Olympics takes place tonight. I always enjoy watching the Olympic events. I like the stories and the athleticism that a part of the games. One of the stories this year was in the arena of basketball. Kobe Bryant made an implication that the current USA basketball team could beat the original dream team of 1992.  Sports radio and newspaper articles immediately debating. Could basketball players such as Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and Lebron James beat guys like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, David Robinson, and Larry Bird? I heard arguments both ways, but most seemed to agree that the edge would belong to the 1992 team. 

In listening to people discuss the strengths and weaknesses of both groups, my mind began to wander and wonder. What if God were to assemble His dream team? What would that look like? There would be brave men and women who would obviously be chosen first, right? You would have to include a man like Abraham so faithful and trusting that he would pack up his family and leave even when he had no clue where God would lead him. You would probably include Noah who stayed faithful when all others turned away. he built a boat when he had never seen rain. You would probably include a guy like Moses who stood fearlessly before Pharaoh and demanded him to let God's people go. What about David who fought a giant and killed him? He would have to be included. What about Peter who stood fearlessly stating that he would obey God rather than man, whatever the cost may be? He would have to be on God's dream team. Who could possibly forget Paul who was beaten and left for dead because he preached the gospel, yet he still fulfilled his mission. He definitely needs to be on God's dream team.

All these men may make you and feel as though we have no place on God's dream team. I mean we may love God, but have we been tested like these men? Have you and I been beaten and left for dead? Have we built a boat when we never saw rain? Have we killed a giant because he disrespected God? Have we faced prison for being a Christian? It seems that God's roster must be full. Surely there is no room for us. I mean we fall short in so many ways. We doubt. We mistreat people sometimes. We give in to pressure. Is there any hope?

Fortunately God's team is also made up of guys like Abraham, who despite great faith also expressed fear and told his wife to lie and say she was his sister. It is made up of guys like Noah who after being delivered from destruction got off the ark and passed out drunk. It is made up of guys like Moses who doubted God's ability and decision making. It is made up guys like David who committed adultery and tried to cover it up by having the lady's husband murdered. It's made up of guys like Peter who gave into pressure and denied even knowing Jesus. It's made up of guys like Paul who was a murderer. So, perhaps there is room for you and I.

God calls us to become a part of His team - His dream team. He looks at our faults and finds goodness. He looks at our doubts and finds mustard seed sized faith. He looks at our darkness and offers light. He looks at our restlessness and offers peace and rest. "Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest." It's as though he is saying, I know you feel alone in this world. I know you feel there is no one to support you, no one who cares for you, no one who will pick you. I know sometimes you feel like the kid on the playground that nobody wants to have on their team, but God's says, "I want you on MY team. Come to me." Will you join God's team? Will you thank him for choosing you. He knows you are imperfect, that's why He chose you. Will you just relish in the fact that He wants you on His team?

The incarnation

Here is part 2 of the Forklift Evangelist Christmas series. Check out the youtube channel for other videos.

Missing the Messiah: A devotional thought from the forklift evangelist

I started a series called Forklift Evangelist. Here is the first of the Christmas series. Let me know what you think.

Siting at the Feet of Grace

Recently I was reading the account of Jesus at the hoe of Mary and Martha in the gospel of Luke (10:38-42). Recall the scene in your mind. Jesus was with his disciples when Martha opened up her home to him. Remember that Mary (Martha’s sister) was sitting at the feet of Jesus, while Martha was busy worrying about the preparations.

Can you imagine? Jesus is in your home! You want everything to be perfect. You begin cleaning and there is nothing out of place. You are slaving all day long over the hot stove baking and cooking and cleaning. You then come to the realization that your sister, Mary, is in the other room just listening and talking with Jesus. You become green with envy! After all, you’re the one that invited him over in the first place. You should be the one listening to his words. But no, you’re stuck in here baking while Mary is the one who is being lazy and making you do all the work. You become furious, and finally you just can’t take it anymore. You come stomping into the room where the others are and you say, “Lord! Don’t you care that Mary has left me to do all the work? Tell her to get in here and help me!”

Then Jesus says these words to her, “Martha, only one thing matters. Mary has chosen what is better.”

The only thing that matters is sitting at the feet of our Lord and learning from him and listening to him. Have you ever been guilty of being too busy to get down at the feet of our gracious Lord and learn from him? I pray that you learn what is most important and sit at his feet and not become so busy with other things that you become blind as to what is really important.

The second chapter of Philippians uses words such as encouragement, comfort, fellowship, tenderness, and compassion. Later on in verse ten, the Bible says “…at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.”

Encouragement, comfort, fellowship, tenderness, and compassion all come with bowing down at the feet of Christ. Make it your goal to take the time to sit at the feet of Jesus and learn from him. Bow down and humble yourself and realize what is most important: Jesus! I challenge you to join Mary and sit down at the feet of grace.

My Healer; My Solid Rock

It began like any other Sunday. I clocked out at work at 6:00 AM and drove home to try to get some sleep before it was time to leave for worship. We were running late and by the time we checked the kids into their classes, we had missed a couple of songs. A video played discussing mission work in Cyprus, but there was a technical glitch and it kept stopping and starting. When it was decided the video would not play, the band came back up to lead us in a few songs.

In all honesty, my mind was wandering all over the place. I was thinking about being late and how I hate being late. I was thinking about my day and how I did not have enough sleep. I was wondering what was wrong with the video and why it wasn’t playing. I was distracted. I said a silent prayer to God asking Him to let me focus.

Josh (our worship leader) introduced the next song and I was immediately brought back into focus. The song wasChris Tomlin’s Our God. It talks about how great our God is. He is greater, stronger, higher than any other. It then had the words “Our God is healer, awesome in power.” I began to think of healing. My mind first went to my dad, who had been in the hospital for a while and who was not doing well during that stay. He is now improving daily and I thanked God for being his healer. I then thought about my own life and the healing taking place. I had been bitter and guilty for quite some time after losing my last ministry job, I felt like such a failure. Tears were forming in my eyes as I sang about God being my healer. He is healing me more and more each day as I seek His will. He is healing my hurts; my pain; my brokenness. He is is greater than my pain. He is stronger than my guilt. He is healer of my sorrows. He is Lord. By the time we got to the part of the song that reinforces if our God is for us, what can stand against us, I was so excited to be God’s child.

A little later in the worship time we sang the old hymn My Hope is Built on Nothing Less. The chorus states “on Christ the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.” I began to thank God for being the solid rock I can stand upon. I also wondered why so many times, I try to stand on ground that isn’t solid. I look at the sinking sand around me and think, “I can make it across before I start to sink.” That is not true. Every time I try to stand on anything other than Christ, I sink deep into the quick sand. The more I struggle to get free, the deeper I sink. Why do I keep trying to stand on anything but Jesus? He is the solid rock. He holds me up in a world of sinking sand. He heals my hurts, pains, sorrows, shame, guilt, and regrets. I am so thankful for the way God answered my prayer Sunday morning. He used the songs to minister to me. He always knows just what I need and He is always ready to point me back to him if I am only willing to listen. I pray we can learn to put aside our distractions and listen to His still quiet voice as He so deeply longs to speak to us.

Leave a Legacy

There are people who have been a part of my life that have left a legacy for me. Their names have never been in bright lights. People are not surrounding them with cameras flashing asking for their autograph, yet they have left a legacy. They have made an impact in my life which I am forever grateful. It was often the small things they did that made the greatest impact. The 3rd grade teacher who gave me a Bible when I did not have one of my own. I do not remember her name or any of the classes she taught. I did not understand the words in the King James Bible she gave me, but I remember that she cared about me enough to take me to the church book store and buy me a Bible.

I recall the man who took me to the basketball games at Oklahoma Christian when I was in middle school. I don’t remember what class he taught at church, but I do remember the way he cared about me and it left a legacy for me to love others.

My parents have always cared for me and wanted the best for me. They have left a legacy for me. I do not remember all the words they have spoken, but I do know their love for me.

I want to ask you the question—what legacy are you leaving? How will you be remembered? I hope to be remembered as one who loves people. I want to live my life in such a way that all those who know me understand that I loved them. I like when people remember a sermon I preached. I love when kids remember an illustration I gave to explain a Bible point; but more than anything I want people to know I loved them and that God loves them. I want to leave a legacy. However, sometimes life gets in the way. I get so busy going from one task to the other and one activity to the other, that I fail to love. I fail to leave a legacy.

How about you? Do you find yourself so busy that you do not have time to love people? Do you find you do not have time to serve others? Maybe you are going through life staying busy and you even have your name in the paper and you make the headlines, but you are not leaving a lasting legacy—is it really worth it? We have a lot of kids at our church who need someone to leave a legacy for them. They need to know they are loved and cared for. Yet, in our busy way of life, we cannot find the time to love them. We cannot find the time share our hearts, to teach a class, to leave a legacy. What legacy are choosing to leave?

Tulsa Reflections

Okay, so I'm late with this post. Sorry. Our family recently attended the Tulsa International Soul Winning Workshop. This is always my favorite weekend of the year. It was a great time of renewal. It was so good to see friends that we have not seen in such a long time and make new friends. The theme was centered around prayer - specifically the Lord's prayer. The speakers were great. Some of my favorites were Jeff Walling, Patrick Mead, Rick Atchley, Randy Harris, and Don McLaughlin.

One of the things about the Lord's prayer is that it is active and contains many elements. The opening of Our Father carries a great realization to it. What if we were able to truly view God as the perfect Father? The great Abba? What if people could learn that God is a father that is unlike earthly fathers? He is a father who does not leave; does not neglect; does not fail. He is God an our Father.

Hallowed be Your name is a great term of praise. What if we truly learned how to praise God for His holiness? What would our world look like?

What I get excited about is the statement, "Your kingdom come and Your will be done..." A lot of different thoughts come to mind with the word kingdom. Some view the kingdom as already being established; others view it as something that is yet to come. My thought is I agree. The kingdom came when Jesus ushered it in, but we have yet to fully realize it.

In association with prayer, what if we learned to pray for the kingdom to come? How exciting for God's kingdom to truly reign in the hearts of every man, woman, and child. I am learning to pray kingdom prayers. I have a long way to go, but I am learning. DO you have any thoughts concerning praying for the kingdom? What is your understanding of kingdom?

Community

I believe one of the most important aspects of Christianity is community.I also believe it is the greatest means of outreach. Jesus prayed that His believers would be one. He said the world would know that we are His disciples when we love one another. So why is community so difficult? It is hard to live outside myself. I find it difficult to put others needs above myself. Sometimes I wonder if the reason is because I have been burned by people who claimed they were my friend or ally. We are a fallen people. I think that makes the need for community even greater. As Christians, we are the church and church is the body of Christ. We need each other. I need you and you need me. That is how the body of Christ should function. Let's learn how to love one another and see that we need each other. That is when the world will look at us and see that we have something to offer that they are missing in life.

Seasons of Change

It seems that life is all about change. Things change over the course of a lifetime. The shows I loved as a child no longer come on television. Those that do, I no longer enjoy like I did as a child. The music I used to love sounds cheesy - even the word cheesy is outdated. Remember how it it used to be cool to say words like "rad," "dude," and "narly." Or is it Gnarly? Anyway, things change. society changes, culture changes, attitudes change, the status quoe changes. There have been many changes in our lives lately. Adopting Drew from Ethiopia was a major change in our life. We moved from Memphis to Sallisaw. Kellie and I both have new jobs. Drew and Timothy attend different schools. Things have changed over the last year. Even since we have been in Sallisaw things have changed. The church we are working with has changed from one traditional service to a traditional and an emerging service. I began coaching soccer. Soccer is now over. Things have changed. We have one more major change coming into our lives. We are expecting a baby. Kellie is due on May 27. Isn't life fun! We are excited about the new addition to our family. We know that it will be a change, but we are excited about the change and look forward to all the exciting adventures that life has in store. Please pray for our family. These are positive changes, but there have been many in a short time and that adds extra stress to our lives. Thank you so much for your continued support.

Excitement building

Things continue to progress in Sallisaw. We are still staying in Muskogee, but it is not too bad. My time so far has been spent getting adjusted to the town, setting up my office, and brainstorming on ways to meet people and reach out to them. David (our senior minister) and I have spent a lot of time talking about what we want the new service to look like. We know there are certain elements we want to focus on:

Community experience,
Corporate and personal worship
Active, participatory worship
Transformation
Reconciliation
Conversational
Dialog with God
Calling upon God for help, guidance, deliverance
Family, togetherness, community
Search for something to base life on, truth, meaning
Genuineness, authenticity
Intensity
Worship experience, engaging all the senses.

It will be a church that is Personal yet built around Community.
A church that practices acceptance, yet seeks transformation.
One that provides a foundation and truth to build life around.

I am so excited to get started and begin putting these theories and principles into practice. Please keep praying for us as we seek to live out the Gospel to the people around us.

Transition

These last couple of months have been totally chaotic. It has been traveling and interviewing. The stress of traveling with two boys and interviewing with churches and decisions as to where to move our family has been overwhelming at times. Thankfully they are beginning to come to an end.
We have not been home in 2 two months and when we finally did arrive home in Memphis, it was only to pack and move to our new home. We are still homeless at the moment as we wait for closing on a house so we can move in and begin unpacking.
After many interview, phone conferences, and submitting more resumes than I care to count, we will be moving to Sallisaw, Oklahoma. I have begun working with a small church that is seeking ways to be a beacon of light to the community. I have been brought on staff as an associate minister in charge of developing a service and outreach geared at the under 35 crowd. I am very excited about this new position and am eager to get started. Please pray for our family as we transition to a new place with new relationships and new demands. Also please pray that we are able to move into our house soon. We are currnetly staying with my parents in Muskogee and I make the hour long commute each morning. It is hard to do ministry in a city when you are not living there.
I have Internet at work and should be able to update my blog more regularly now. Thank you for your prayers and for keeping in contact with us.

Ozark Christian College Mission Team

It was a great and exhausting week of spring break. A group of students and faculty members from Ozark Christian College came to work with Memphis Urban Ministry for the week. It was a great time of outreach and service. Sunday evening we passed out flyers and registered kids for the two day kids camp that would be taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday. It was a good opportunity for the people to see Memphis and the neighborhood they would be working with during the week. The area of focus was Clearborne homes which is saturated with poverty. Monday was a day spent preparing chili and serving lunch to the community. Many homeless men and women came through the line as well as many families who stated they would not be able to feed their children if they did not have that meal that day. About 70 people were served lunch on Monday.
Tuesday and Wednesday was spent conducting a kid's camp. It was basically a two day VBS. About 30 kids participated in the full two day camp and there were many more who were able to attend only certain portions of the camp.
Thursday was also a great day. Hot dogs were served and clothes were given out. About 50 people came in for clothing and approximatley 10-15 more people came for lunch only.

It was a great week. I am thankful to the group from OZark who gave up a spring break to come to Memphis to serve a hurting and impoverished community. The smiles on the faces of the children and the parents who were served tells of the great appreciation.

A picture of unity

Sunday was a beautiful day. It was also a confusing day. One of those days where the worship service does not go as planned, but still created a beautiful image of Christ. We had an area wide worship of the urban congregations on Sunday. The auditorium was packed. It was an interesting mix. Inner city poor, missionaries who are working on Masters of Divinity, and people who do not speak English. We have never really had a bilingual service. It was difficult to communicate. It was uncomfortable at times, but it was a beautiful picture.

The theme of the day was unity. We were a group of people seeking unity. We were people that most would say would have nothing in common. It is true. We did not have much in common. We did not all look alike. We were not all from the same part of town. We were all different ages. We did not all speak the same language. But we do all serve the same Lord. That brought us together. We were together in the name of Jesus singing songs together. The songs were in English and Spanish and we each would sing in our own language at the same time. We were, if only for two hours, a united people. Memphis is not known for unity. It is a very segregated city. We made an effort to be a family. As our Spanish speaking brother would say "Somos familia." We are family.

Communion took on a new meaning. It was not a smooth well played out communion. We decided we would all take the communion together as a symbolic sign of unity. It took a while to pass out the trays and there was awkward silence in which we decided to sing a song that probably wasn't the idea choice for communion, but it was a song we all knew. As I looked across the audience while giving the communion meditation, I saw black, white, and Hispanic all sitting together ready to take communion with each other. It was a small picture of unity.

How beautiful it is to know that there are Christians all around this world. Brothers and sisters who do not look like me, think like me, dress like me, or share the same hobbies as I do. They do not speak the same language, but they do serve the same God! I pray for them and lift them before our Father. And I pray for unity. Unity: such a small word, but what a difficult word it is. For unity is not always popular. But when Christians unite, it is a wonderful picture.

Jesus: The Servant

They were often dirty and in need of being washed. They were usually tired from a long journey. What were they? They were feet. Feet that needed to be washed. Our Lord recognized the need and brought out the water basin and towel. He began to wash the feet of those who didn’t deserve it. They were the men who should be washing his feet, yet not one volunteered. Jesus then began to serve those who did not deserve it. He served the one that would deny him. He got on his knees and performed an act of service on the one that would stab him in the back with a kiss of death.
“For the Son did not come to be served, but to serve,” the words ring in the memory of all who were present. It was hard for Peter to understand and so our Lord said, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.” Christ had to serve. He had to wash their feet, for that is why he came. He came to serve.
Christ has served you and me also. Because he recognized a need in us that no other could, or would, meet. We were in need of cleaning and so He wrapped the towel around his waist and became a servant. “Unless I wash you,” he says, “you have no part with me.” I pray that you allow Christ to wash you this very day.

American Youth: The New Mission Field

This passed weekend, I had the opportunity to attend a youth seminar by Group called Re-ignite. It was a great time to get re-energized and to be reminded of how much this generation need to know Jesus. According to the National Study of Youth and Religion, 9 out of 10 American young people do not have what social researchers call a devoted faith. Their faith in Christ is not central to their life. They do not know the basics of their faith. They do not see how their relationship with Jesus makes an impact on their everyday life.

What have we done wrong? Why is there such a disconnect between this generation and the older generations? What has gone wrong?
According to Battle Cry, this generation of teens is the largest in history and current trends show that only 4% will be believers by the time they become adults. Compare this with 34% of adults today who are believers in Christ. Something must be done. Our method must be off. We have built youth ministry around a big event and big personalities. The problem is that our big events cannot compete with the other big events in life. Thepersonalities we build our programs around do not always stack up. We have focused on men and not on Jesus. We have left Jesus out of ministry. When Jesus is left out, our teaching becomes irrelevant. When asked to describe Jesus, teens described him as "nice." The problem is that we do not teach the real Jesus. A Jesus who is simply nice is not strong enough to walk with teens into the difficult stuff of everyday life. At the Re-ignite workshop, we focused on three questions that are very relevant for our world today.

1. Who do I say Jesus is?
2. Who does Jesus say that I am?
3. Who do I say that I am?

We have spent the majority of our time talking about issues with teens. We have told them not to have premarital sex, but 1,000,000 teenage girls are pregnant and 8,000 youth develop an STD everyday. We have talked to them about avoiding peer pressure, but 1/3 of all youth have been drunk and 1/4 of all youth have used illegal drugs. One in five teenagers have attempted suicide, while 1,500 hundred a year succeed.

Maybe we should spend more time teaching about the real Jesus. If nine out of ten youth do not see how their relationship with Jesus impacts their daily life, maybe we are not teaching the real Jesus. The questions are real. The trials are real. The struggle is real. It's time for youth to be able to see the real Jesus.

What mask are you wearing?

Halloween - it is a time where children (and many adults) dress up and pretend to be something they really are not. I am not here to debate whether or not a Christian should celebrate Halloween. Kellie and I took Timothy to four trunk or treats over the weekend. It is probably a good thing since today it is raining. We saw various costumes - power rangers, spider-man, Superman, farmer, vampires, witches, and even two girls dressed as a salt and pepper shaker. It was really quite interesting to see all the various costumes and the creativity of those who made them. Timothy went as Elmo. He did not really understand what was going on but he did enjoy the candy. Kellie and I also enjoy the candy:)
I began to think back to my childhood. I would often wear a towel as a cape and pretend I was Superman as I jumped off the couch and onto the pile of pillows that represented my enemy. Life was so much simpler then. I could be anyone I wanted to be. I would pretend to be He-Man and I would stop Skeletor. I would be the hero and the world would be safe because I was there to save the people.

Can you already see where this post is going? How strange that the trunk or treat took place in the park lot of a the church building. How many people put on a mask before entering the doors? The mask that makes us look like something we are not - the mask of a spiritual super-hero. We are often afraid to take off our masks. People will see who we really are - they we see that we do not have it all together, that we are indeed broken. What will they think? So we keep our mask on - we sing "Break My Heart" without taking off the mask and in the process allow our hearts to become even more calloused. My spiritual super-hero mask will not allow you to see my weakness; my sin; my kryptonite.

Why is that? Why do we wear masks? What are we so afraid of? Are we afraid that God might see us? He already knows what we look like inside and out. Are we afraid of what the person across the aisle may think? They are broken too. Why do wear masks?

Why do so many Christians wear masks? Why do ministers wear masks? How do we allow ourselves to get to the point that we feel we need to be spiritual super-heroes out to save the world, as if we can save anyone!? I cannot save anyone from sin; only Jesus can. I cannot save myself; only Jesus can. So why do I get tempted to put on my mask? Could it be that the mask has become comfortable? Could it be that we have tried so hard for so long to live up to the expectations of others that we have forgotten who we are without the mask? God, teach us to take off the mask and fall at your feet.

The Church Working Together

I spent a week at my parent's house in Oklahoma last week. It was a great visit. I went to help them clean their house so they can start rebuilding from the fire back in July. The fire happened the last Friday in July and it damaged most of the front half of the house. It has been unlivable for all these weeks.
It was good to be there working with my mom, dad, sister, brother, sister-in-law, aunt, uncle, cousin, and their church family. I arrived on Thursday and enjoyed the visit on Friday a couple of us carried out the old furniture. Saturday, the church group came and helped clean out all the old carpet, tear down the ceiling, and clean up debris. It was a great time of fellowship and service. It was the body of Christ coming together to serve one of its members. I continue to learn more about what it means to be a part of Christ's church. The congregation they are a part of is a small congregation, but nearly every member was present and working.
The church working together for a common goal accomplished much. In no time, the house was cleaned out and ready for the reconstruction. I began to think of how much could be accomplished if the church would learn to work together in unity. How many more people would know our Lord if we would unite towards a common goal? How would we be different if we loved each other with a genuine love of Christ?
It seems that churches have a history of division more than unity. Sadly, many Christians would rather debate one another than work together to reach those who do not follow Christ. We would rather argue over patterns and names rather than how to reach our neighbor.
The lesson I learned was a simple one - when the church works together things get accomplished. How do I translate that into a practical missiology?

What is church?

I suppose you get various answers from different people based upon their knowledge and understanding of ecclesiology. For some, the church is simply a building - they say things like "That church has unusual architecture." They are not able to separate the building from what the church is. Others view church as the assembly or public gathering. They view church as people coming together for an order of worship that includes the leading of a public prayer, singing songs, partaking of communion, public reading of scripture, and a sermon. While I agree that part of what it is to be a church involves coming together for an organized assembly involving prayer, communion, teaching, (where do the announcements come in?), and Scripture reading - I feel there is so much more to being the body of Christ.
Yesterday, Raleigh Community Church experienced what it is like to be a church. We had our corporate assembly where a praise team led the congregation in singing, public prayers were spoken, Scripture was read, a sermon was preached, and communion was served. There were even a couple of baptisms! Praise God! But what followed was church. We left the building and most everyone who attended the assembly gathered at the house of one of the members. We had a meal together. It was a great time of fellowship. We then gathered in the living room for spontaneous worship. It was amazing. It was a time of sharing our hearts through song, prayer, and testimony. If someone needed prayer, they would take the chair in the middle and we would all gather around and place our hands on them and pray and cry and rejoice with them. Tears of pain were running down the faces of the church. Shouts of victory were proclaimed. Peace was received. I arrived for worship service at 11:00 AM, by the time I got home it was nearly 6:00 PM. We were Christ's church functioning as Christ's church. We were white, black; young, old; highly educated, and not so highly educated united in the name of Jesus. We were the church - the body of Christ. I learned an important lesson about church that went far deeper than a sermon ever could. I learned about community in a way that reading a book could never provide. I am a part of Christ's church.
The church is not an hour on Sunday, it is Christ's community of people living in unity. A church is not what happens in a building with a sign out front, the church is also showing each other love and support in a living room. The church is not just what happens within the walls of a building, it is God's people being the hands and feet of Jesus in the world around us.
Have you had an experience that taught you about what church is supposed to be?