Category: Religious

Categories
Religious

The Nature of Mature Faith

Dr. Edward White, a ministry consultant with the Alban Institute, Bethesda, MD,shared with my former church in Pennsylvaniathat persons of mature Christian faith have eight characteristics:

  1. Trusts in God’s saving grace and believes firmly in the humanity and divinity of Jesus.
  1. Experiences a sense of personal well-being, security, and peace.
  1. Integrates faith and life, seeing work, family, social relationships, and political choices as part of one’s religious life.
  1. Seeks spiritual growth through study, reflection, prayer, and discussion with others.
  1. Seeks to be a part of a community of believers in which people give witness to their faith and support and nourish one another. (They show-up for worship and participate in a small group.)
  1. Holds life-affirming values, including commitments to racial and general equality, affirmation of cultural and religious diversity, and a personal sense of responsibility for the welfare of others.
  1. Advocates social and global change to bring about greater social justice.
  1. Serves humanity, consistently and passionately, through acts of love and justice.
     These eight core dimensions of faith were identified after interviews with theological scholars, denominational executives, and open-ended surveys with several hundred adults from six participating denominations, and reviews of the literature in psychology and religion. Where are you on your journey toward mature faith?
Joy,
Categories
Religious

Transformational Leadership

\”If you believe that mission happens naturally in congregations through business as usual,
then the only kind of pastoral leadership you need is operational leadership:
someone to preach the Word, conduct services, oversee programs, and keep the campers happy.
If, however, you believe that mission happens only through the courage to 
continually realign an organization\’s culture with the values of Christ,
then you need something more in a pastor.
You need transformational leadership.\”
John Edmund Kaiser
     Rarely does mission happen naturally.  That is largely due to the fact that congregations are made up on people – normal people who find that our default setting is to look out for ourselves before having a concern for others.  As church consultant Bill Kemp once observed, \”It is human nature to be protective of ones own turf and to perpetuate practices that have become familiar and habitual.\”  Intentional change to adapt to a changing world is difficult.  This is true for the church.
     Where does the church begin?  The starting place for a vital and compelling ministry in the local community must always be the assertion, \”It\’s not about us.  It\’s about God.\”  Congregations that lack vitality are ones that operate as if \”our preferences, our tastes, and our needs\” were the most important considerations.  Naturally, such a belief makes \”us\” the center, not God.
     The next step is personal formation by each member into the character of Jesus.  The Bible is quite clear that the church is the body of Christ, called to continue the earthly ministry of Christ.  Another way of saying that is to imagine the whole gathered church standing in front of a mirror.  Does the reflection look anything like Jesus?  Or does the mirror simply reflect a whole bunch of people wrapped-up in self-interest?  Christian formation is simply the intentional process of changing our form, our reflected image in the mirror, to look more and more like Christ.
     Finally, the effective church is one where those who are being formed into Christ accept some responsibility, some ministry in the church that makes sense to their own ability and talent.  God never intended the church to accomplish ministry by paid staff only.  The strength of any church is measured by the number of members who understand that they have a responsibility to share in the common ministry.  Additionally, the Book of Ephesians teaches that the work of ministry is an indispensable tool for continued growth into the image of Jesus (Ephesians 4:12-13).
     Someone has correctly said that it\’s time to get serious about the reason our congregation exists.  We are not here for ourselves.  Through our baptism, we have joined a movement larger than ourselves.  We are now on God\’s mission.  And that work will not be completed until, as scripture says, every knee, of every nation has bowed before Jesus Christ and acknowledged Him Lord.
Joy,
Categories
Religious

Pastoral Role in the Discipleship Model

“The pastoral role in the discipleship model is a function of leadership, not chaplaincy. 
One of the great tragedies of the chaplaincy model is that it sets pastors up for failure. 
No matter how committed pastors may be, there is simply no way they can always be present in times of need. Times of crisis come when the family or individual least expects them. 
Pastors are often not immediately available or may be so exhausted or so pressed for time that, 
even when they are available, they are not entirely there”. 
Michael W. Foss
“What is needed in today’s context are not pastors who ‘do’ ministry but pastors who, 
from the wellspring of their own spirituality, ‘lead’ others in the doing of ministry.” 
Michael W. Foss
“When they found Him, they told Him, ‘Everyone’s looking for You!’ 
He replied, ‘Let’s head in the other direction, to the nearby villages, so that I can preach there too. That’s why I’ve come.” 
Mark 1:37-38 (Common English Bible)
     Pay close attention to what is happening in Mark’s Gospel.  The previous day, Jesus exhausted Himself providing pastoral care to increasingly large numbers of people.  Isn’t it true that when you are handing out what people want, they seem to show-up in large numbers?  Well, Jesus finally had to call a day a day.  He was depleted.  Jesus went to bed.  Early the next morning, the crowds returned for more.  The disciples went looking for Jesus who rose early for prayer.  When they found Him, they told Jesus, “Everyone’s looking for You!”  That was the short way of saying, “Come back and continue giving away the good stuff that You were handing-out yesterday.  Everyone loves You for it!”
     Trouble is, Jesus didn’t feel He had to meet people’s expectations of Him.  Jesus never lost focus of His primary purpose – to expand the God movement that was underway in the world.  Yes, He performed miracles, healing and administered pastoral care the previous day.  Yet, all of that was simply to provide a glimpse of the power of the God movement – not its purpose.  The people tried to harness the power of the movement for themselves, to take care of their wants and needs.  Jesus saw that and refused to go back.  “Let’s head in the other direction,” Jesus said to the disciples.  Essentially, Jesus was saying that His purpose was evangelism, not caring for the flock already gathered.
     The Bible teaches that the church is charged – or commissioned – to continue the ministry of Jesus.  That means the church continues with the same guiding purpose that directed Jesus, the expansion of the God movement.  And the book of Ephesians teaches that pastors of local churches are to lead the movement with their own congregations.  The practical dimension of this is that pastors are not to be chaplains.  Chaplains go back to the gathering large crowds.  Jesus did not.
      Naturally, people need prayer, pastoral care and encouragement.  Life’s journey sometimes becomes difficult.  But what scripture teaches in Exodus 18, Acts 6 and Ephesians 4, along with so many other places, is that pastoral care is to come primarily from the people of God to the people of God.  Pastors are to lead; people are to care for one another.
     This notion may not find favor among some people.  It simply doesn’t fit their idea of what a pastor should be and do.  Jesus was placed on a cross because of the same thing; people expected something different from a Messiah.  As someone once said to me, “Some people will not allow the Bible to interfere with what they believe the pastor should do.”  Pastors that capitulate to the people’s desire will find that they have become chaplains to dying churches.  God simply will not bless any design for ministry that is not God’s own.    
     Make no mistake, Jesus did some pastoral care.  And it is reasonable that any pastor will provide some pastoral care as well.  But the pastor will do so within a larger system or network of people.  Additionally, larger churches such as First Presbyterian Church of Delray Beach are fortunate to have the financial resources to have additional pastors who direct the pastoral care of the church.  Even then, however, it is unfaithful to the scriptures for any associate pastor to assume all the care responsibilities.  Faithful leadership by these associate pastors is to “equip” church members for an expansive program of care.  Stephen Ministry is one way that this is done.  As congregations search the scriptures, embrace God’s blueprint for the church, and surrender false and selfish notions of what they expect from the church’s leadership, an unnatural power is released.  That power is simply God being God in the church and among a faithful people.
Joy,
Categories
Religious

Transformation is Not a Passive Process

“Transformation is not a passive process.  
It is a process in which we continue to make choices and our character develops.” 
DallasWillard
     Ask anyone in church if they desire to grow in their faith, to become more like Christ, and the usual response is “Yes.”  Follow that question with another, “What are you doing now for that to happen?” and the usual response is a puzzled look.  Rarely does the average church member think about intentional steps for growing in their faith.  Others mistakenly believe that regular attendance in worship does the job.  Make no mistake, regular worship is vital for a growing faith.  But alone, from any other intentional practices, worship will accomplish little in spiritual growth.
     I have written a book, Faith Journey: a Pathway for Traveling with Christ, which is really a curriculum in Christlikeness.  This fourteen-week journey with a small group looks at the nature of discipleship, the five irreducible faith practices of a follower of Jesus and guides each person in the development of a personal, intentional, spiritual growth plan for becoming more Christlike.  In one sense, this curriculum is a “starter kit” for beginning an authentic walk with Jesus that leads to personal transformation.
     Dallas Willard is right that spiritual transformation does not just happen because we wish for it.  We clearly see this truth with our physical bodies.  If we desire to be physically fit and full of energy what is required is intentional practices of regular exercise and good choices with our diet.  No one has ever “wished” pounds off.  Choices must be made and acted on.
     Fortunately, there is help with nearly every desire for change.  Alcoholics Anonymous has helped countless people move away from an unhealthy dependence on alcohol, Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig have assisted many in losing weight, and similar support groups for other difficulties abound.  Rarely does someone have to “go it alone” when seeking transformation.  But in every one of these organizations, membership is followed by intentional practices.  Faith Journey (available on Amazon.com by placing “W. Douglas Hood, Jr.” in the search engine) was written to be your partner in spiritual transformation.  Naturally, there are other resources available that guide the individual along a pathway of spiritual growth.  One of the best is Discipleship Essentials by Greg Ogden, also available on Amazon.  Regardless of the resource selected, transformation of character into that of Christ will require the kind of intentionality these resources provide.  Yes, each of these resources requires energy and effort.  But I ask you not to think of it as “homework” but, rather, as “faithwork.”  Your life will be changed.
Joy,
Categories
Religious

New Models for Ministry

“Why do we keep doing church the same way even when we know it’s in critical decline?”
“The problem is that our present evangelical ‘Come to us’ paradigm of the church has not been an appropriate missiological response to the paradigms that exist in our world.”
Both quotes from, The Tangible Community: Creating Incarnational Community
     I agree that that second quote is fairly jargon laden.  But the insight is an important one. The problem with the way many congregations do church is that they attempt to “institutionalize” the way church was once done, and the way we like it, and expect people to come and share our preference.  Examples abound.  We want worship that only uses music that suits our taste, Sunday School that uses traditional curriculum and programs offerings “like we remember it used to be done.”  Rather than asking the important question, “How might we connect more people to Jesus Christ?” we become guardians of “old” church.
     Consider this quote from another book, A Field Guide for the Missional Congregation.  “The speaker was trying to be gracious, but he also wanted to be honest.  Addressing a large number of pastors of a midsized mainline denomination, he remarked, ‘You know, if the 1950s ever come back, your congregations are well prepared to respond.’”
     Fortunately, the numbers of people in our church who are discontent with “old” church are multiplying.  They are persons who have a contagious passion to share Jesus Christ with others.  And they are determined to do so even if it means developing new models for ministry.
     This, of course, does not mean that everything old is bad.  Traditional worship, with its traditional hymns, continues to speak to the deep needs of many persons.  Traditional Sunday School curriculum can still be effective for some and programs that have been repeated for years may still have value.  The conversation here is not about “out with the old and in with the new!”  The point these books wish to make is that it is shortsighted to expect unchurched persons in our community to be spiritually nurtured in the same way that we are.  Rather than wholesale dismissal of everything old and embracing only what is new, these authors suggest a principle of “and also.”  This principal simply means that the church continue with what still works while exploring “also” other approaches to connect people with Jesus and nurture their faith.
      In the New Year, your leaders will be wrestling with how we might keep our focus on the main thing, bringing more people to Jesus Christ.  Celebrating what already works while developing new approaches will require much discernment and care.  Your continued prayers for your Elders is solicited and appreciated. 
Joy,
Categories
Religious

Building a Great Church

“Let us build a church so great that those who come after us may think us mad to have attempted it!”
Unknown Christian leader whose words led to the building of the Cathedral of Seville
     Naturally, the definition of “great” is subjective. Different people will have different notions of what “great” looks like. Yet, many members of any church would say they would like for “their” church to be “great.” Some might say that their church has already arrived – that their church is now a great church. I believe that it is safe to say that the unknown leader whose words are quoted above defined “great” as a building of incredible size and beauty.
     Some members of First Presbyterian Church of Delray Beach believe that this church has already arrived – that this is a great church. I have heard some mention our “great music program.” Others have pointed to the beautiful Sanctuary. Still others speak with considerable delight about the positive impact the church makes in the community addressing homelessness, hunger and addiction. Each one is right, of course. By each of these measures, First Presbyterian Church is a great church.
     But let’s return to our original notion that “great” is subjective. It all comes down to what any particular person considers “great.” While celebrating what First Presbyterian Church already does well, there remains other areas where “great” is still out in front of us. Each person will have their own list; their own idea of where this church can still achieve greater distinction. Permit me to share my dream list:
*    Increasing numbers of people organizing themselves in small groups for the purposes of intentional spiritual formation.
*    Increasing numbers of people who equip themselves for contagiously reaching others for Jesus Christ and inviting them to full participation in the life and ministry of the church.
*    Increasing numbers of people who chose to give-up the notion that they have “done their duty” to the church but continually look for ways to be in ministry that the church may be more effective.
*    Increasing numbers of people who chose to live with a spirit of financial generosity to the church recognizing that nothing has greater value than the impact of the church upon the world.
     Your list may be different. But I hope that you have a list. It is dangerous not to have a list. The absence of a list suggests that nothing more needs to be done, that God is satisfied with the current ministry. That kind of thinking not only results in smugness and eventual lethargy and death of the church, it is simply not faithful to the Bible. God simply will not rest until every human heart has been fully transformed from thoughts of entitlement and self-interest to the selfless character and generosity of spirit that possessed Christ. 
Joy,
Categories
Religious

Our Shared Ministry

“Victimized by nostalgia and buffeted by fear, the church is focused too much on
 merely holding the small plot of ground that it currently occupies to
 confidently reimagine a robust future.”
–Michael Frost
     Frost argues that many churches today have become so preoccupied with self – the preservation of old programs, maintenance of old leadership models and a “good-enough” attitude toward its facilities – that they no longer are a major force in the community for God.  Such churches spend more energy on resentful sadness about what was, and now is not, than on confidently listening for God to lead them into a robust future.
     Amazingly, I am hearing something different from many members of this church. I hear that you understand people today expect quality and our church must meet that expectation in all that we do, that the needs of people have changed so our approach to ministry must change, and that God will never be honored with a “good-enough” attitude.  These comments and many more have been on the lips of church members in the short time I have been with you. These comments are not typical for a church as old as First Presbyterian. 
     As I complete my first six months as your pastor, I am continually surprised and delighted by the number of persons who have been seized with a forward view for our shared ministry.  You are not a people who desire to rest upon past success.  God has much more to accomplish – until every nation has acknowledged Jesus as Lord – and you seem energized by how God will make you a part of that future.  For that I am deeply grateful.
Joy,
Categories
Religious

How To Do Ministry Over Time

“When the Spirit breaks in, old ways of thinking and living are left behind
 and new ways of thinking and living begin to take over.  
Old boring, oppressive, and dead social structures and institutions are transformed
 into exciting new, liberating ones.  It may not happen all at once, 
but when the Holy Spirit comes there is the dawn of a new day, 
hope for a new and different future, and courage and strength to move toward it.”
Shirley C. Guthrie, Christian Doctrine
      These words are from an old seminary textbook I had during my seminary days more than twenty-five years ago.  Yet, they still speak with freshness to the church today.
     The author was my professor of Reformed Theology.  He continued to challenge his students to look for the activity of the Holy Spirit in the church.  He also challenged his students to look for obstacles that good church people continually put in place to prevent a fresh work of the Spirit.  Idolatry, Guthrie taught, was evident in Christian churches as well as in secular culture.  Idolatry was simply placing our hope and security in something that is familiar and fixed; something other than the God of the Bible who is always mixing things up.
     We don’t like change very much.  This is especially true in the church.  Guthrie observed that when the world changes rapidly around us, we seek refuge and protection from the unfamiliar in the church.  Problem is, says Guthrie, if you don’t like change, you won’t much like God either.  God is always mixing things up.  Pay close enough attention to the Bible and you will hear again and again, “I am accomplishing a new thing!”
     Your church leaders, the Elders, are continually called to prayer and discernment of what God is up to in our church.  The natural result is a visioning and planning process that most certainly results in changes in how we do ministry over time.  If we didn’t intentionally plan for change, we should not be surprised if we continue to get more of the same; same level of church membership, same level of worship attendance, same level of financial support for God’s mission in the world.
     I believe that it was Jim Collins who mentioned that the reason a major railroad company experienced rapid decline in profits at one point was that it never realized what business it was in.  The company thought it was in the railroad business when, in fact, it was in the transportation business.  As the transportation business demanded new models, the railroad stubbornly stuck to running a railroad business and almost bankrupt.  The church must remember what business it is in, lest it also bankrupts.  We are in the business of making disciples for Jesus Christ and the way we once did that may no longer be effective.    
Joy,
Categories
Religious

Committed to Making Discples

“When it comes to the church, the object of the game is to make disciples. 
The object is not to find them, gather them, or improve them. The object is to make them.”
 John Edmund Kaiser
     Kaiser continues in his book, Winning On Purpose, that the reason – the primary reason – that many churches are in trouble today is that they have forgotten the object of the game. The object of the game is to make disciples. When that object, or purpose, is forgotten, church members become lost in much activity, much of it good activity. But it is not the object of the game. Jesus states that the object of the game is to make disciples.
     Another way of looking at it, asserts Kaiser, is that the object is all about the inflow of people beginning their relationship with Christ. That is measured by the number of professions of faith that results in baptism or persons making a reaffirmation of faith, meaning that they are starting again. Transfer of Church letter as a means of receiving new members isn’t bad. They represent more disciples to advance the mission of the local church. It’s just that transfers can’t legitimately be counted as additional disciples for the kingdom. They have simply transferred from there to here.
     So what happens in many churches? Kaiser says that when the primary object is forgotten, the focus turns to any number of things, such as pastoral care, Christian education, fellowship activities and keeping the people happy. None of these activities are bad in themselves. Trouble is, says Kaiser, these activities are not really making disciples but merely servicing disciples in a way that makes them comfortable. And the supreme danger sign for the church is when the leaders no longer count how many new people came to the Lord in a given year but how much care was given, lessons taught and fellowship activities offered.
     A new scorecard is required! If First Presbyterian Church of Delray Beach is committed to God’s supreme purpose – making disciples of Jesus Christ – then greater attention must be given to the practice of ministry. Pastoral care, teaching and preaching are still important. So are opportunities for simply gathering together to enjoy each other like our recent Dancing with the Stars. Yet, none of these accomplish making new disciples for Jesus. The challenge before your elected leaders is praying deeply and thinking broadly about what must be done to become a disciple-making church. Your prayers for our leaders are coveted and appreciated.
Joy,
Categories
Religious

Not Looking to the Past

“Whenever a church becomes static, its members begin to look only to the past.”
David H. C. Read
     Though I have considerable admiration for David H. C. Read, I would have reversed his comment above. I believe what is more poignant is: “Whenever church members begin to look only to the past, their church has become static.” The Bible celebrates a mobile God who continually calls His people to be on the move. An eye cast backward instead of forward is the clearest signal that vitality for imaginative ministry has waned and nostalgia has overtaken a church.
     What does it mean to look forward? Simply, a church that looks forward understands that the church doesn’t exist for the members. The church exists for advancing God’s mission. Make no mistake. The Bible is clear that as the church advances God’s agenda each member has the responsibility to demonstrate genuine concern and care for one another. Yet, there is a huge difference between an organization that simply exist to care for one another and the church that cares for one another while it pursues God’s mission.
     Many years ago I heard a pastor ask his congregation this question, “Why is the windshield of a car larger than the rear-view mirror?” The answer is that what is ahead of us is far more important than what is behind us. It has been said that the devil resist anything new in the church because he may lose ground to Jesus. The most used and worn tool of Satan is placing seven words into the hearts and minds of church members, “We never did it that way before.” The implication, of course, “…and we shouldn’t do it now.”  But if that verdict wins, the result would be a static church whose members only look to the past.
Joy,