A Little Numb
First, some links:
Just when you thought every single direction for a Star Wars parody had been discovered...
A personal - and worth considering - perspective on holiday (in this case, Mother's Day) church events
--- --- ---
My weekend has left me a little numb.
Friday, I took Kristy to see the Peoria Players Theatre's production of "Crazy For You," the Gershwin musical. It was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the time to spend alone with my wife. The play felt like ten songs with a plot haphazardly attempting to tie them together, but still fun nonetheless. As a follower of Christ (who is a man), I wished the burlesque elements could have been toned down or something.
Saturday, I took my family to a Saturday morning revival service at our home church. Kristy and I sang two songs as part of the proceedings, and we learned new songs this time, which was fun. The one song I'd heard before, but the other one had words that really spoke to the cry of my heart:
To be used of God, to sing, to preach, to pray;
To be used of God to show someone the way:
I want so much to feel the touch of His consuming fire -
To be used of God is my desire.
The guest preacher preached a good message about how revival in the church takes work. The guest preacher is a personal friend of mine from my days working at Cedar River Baptist Camp, and it was good to see him.
In the afternoon, I drove an hour to an undisclosed location and met a personal friend to hear more of his story. D___ has had to leave the independent Baptist church in which he grew up, which formed a significant part of his identity, and the parting and subsequent rhetoric hasn't been pretty. I talked with him for nearly eight hours about his experience, his subsequent re-evaluation of everything of significance in his life, and where he finds himself at this juncture of his journey. What follows are one-sentence conclusions I came to, based on our conversation:
- As a fellow independent Baptist, I am ashamed of the way that D___ and others have been treated by their former church.
- As a fellow independent Baptist, I am even more ashamed - I don't think apalled is too strong - at the way that D___'s personal relationships fell off the face of the planet in the time following his decision.
- If independent Baptists are so convinced that single-person pastoral leadership is the appropriate Biblical structure, then we've got to stop providing such strong anecdotal evidence against it.
- The experience of some people in independent Baptist churches is causing them to question the validity of relationship with God.
- Given that, it should come as no surprise that, for people in this state, there is no issue that is beyond scrutiny, with their baseline position being somewhere on the opposite side of the spectrum from where the offending independent Baptist church stands.
- D___ is - and will be - a stronger, better follower of Christ for having encountered this experience.
- I'd put the odds at 50/50 that it'll be in a church outside of independent Baptist circles.
- Which kills me. Not because D___'s expression of his walk with Christ will be less than authentic - I am so beyond that - but because independent Baptist churches need men like D___ in the worst way.
- One imminent danger (among several) for D___ is that the qualities of a single pompous, self-centered, incompetent leader, and the brain-dead ignorance of his followers, will be imposed on other bodies of Christ followers whose most glaring misfortune is being in the same social circle.
- D___ has been ostracized, and the image of his relationship with Christ has been shredded, by the pastor and the people of the church which he prayerfully, and with no small amount of turmoil, decided to leave.
- This direction of treatment by independent Baptists as a whole of questioners within their bodies absolutely must stop.
So, as you can imagine, I had quite a bit on my mind going into Sunday worship services. We attended our home church, where the guest preacher preached both services. We ate lunch with him, and the quartet we're part of sang in both services. It was fun to sing with the quartet again.
But the guest preacher couldn't stop talking about the great spirit of the services, and how blessed the audience was to be part of this church. He was absolutely right about the spirit of the services, but my observation, from knowing the lives of many of these people, is that the good spirit of the services doesn't extend into their daily lives. There is a lot of pain just under the surface, perhaps concentrated in a few people but present nonetheless, that isn't being dealt with in ways that honor Christ.
It scares me, and it's painful to observe.
So, hopefully you'll understand if I'm a little numb at the moment. I'm weary of analyzing the misdirections of the ones who are supposed to be showing me the way. I'm more anxious than ever for the opportunity to craft an expression of life together which is true to what God is showing me and some of my friends.
It'll be an independent Baptist church, but in the ways that are of significance, it won't look much like what they've come to be. As much as it pains me to say that, it's the truth, because I will die from the inside out otherwise.
I cried to thee, O LORD; and unto the LORD I made supplication.
What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?
Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me: LORD, be thou my helper.
Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;
To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever. - The Bible, Psalm 30:8-12
Just when you thought every single direction for a Star Wars parody had been discovered...
A personal - and worth considering - perspective on holiday (in this case, Mother's Day) church events
--- --- ---
My weekend has left me a little numb.
Friday, I took Kristy to see the Peoria Players Theatre's production of "Crazy For You," the Gershwin musical. It was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the time to spend alone with my wife. The play felt like ten songs with a plot haphazardly attempting to tie them together, but still fun nonetheless. As a follower of Christ (who is a man), I wished the burlesque elements could have been toned down or something.
Saturday, I took my family to a Saturday morning revival service at our home church. Kristy and I sang two songs as part of the proceedings, and we learned new songs this time, which was fun. The one song I'd heard before, but the other one had words that really spoke to the cry of my heart:
To be used of God, to sing, to preach, to pray;
To be used of God to show someone the way:
I want so much to feel the touch of His consuming fire -
To be used of God is my desire.
The guest preacher preached a good message about how revival in the church takes work. The guest preacher is a personal friend of mine from my days working at Cedar River Baptist Camp, and it was good to see him.
In the afternoon, I drove an hour to an undisclosed location and met a personal friend to hear more of his story. D___ has had to leave the independent Baptist church in which he grew up, which formed a significant part of his identity, and the parting and subsequent rhetoric hasn't been pretty. I talked with him for nearly eight hours about his experience, his subsequent re-evaluation of everything of significance in his life, and where he finds himself at this juncture of his journey. What follows are one-sentence conclusions I came to, based on our conversation:
- As a fellow independent Baptist, I am ashamed of the way that D___ and others have been treated by their former church.
- As a fellow independent Baptist, I am even more ashamed - I don't think apalled is too strong - at the way that D___'s personal relationships fell off the face of the planet in the time following his decision.
- If independent Baptists are so convinced that single-person pastoral leadership is the appropriate Biblical structure, then we've got to stop providing such strong anecdotal evidence against it.
- The experience of some people in independent Baptist churches is causing them to question the validity of relationship with God.
- Given that, it should come as no surprise that, for people in this state, there is no issue that is beyond scrutiny, with their baseline position being somewhere on the opposite side of the spectrum from where the offending independent Baptist church stands.
- D___ is - and will be - a stronger, better follower of Christ for having encountered this experience.
- I'd put the odds at 50/50 that it'll be in a church outside of independent Baptist circles.
- Which kills me. Not because D___'s expression of his walk with Christ will be less than authentic - I am so beyond that - but because independent Baptist churches need men like D___ in the worst way.
- One imminent danger (among several) for D___ is that the qualities of a single pompous, self-centered, incompetent leader, and the brain-dead ignorance of his followers, will be imposed on other bodies of Christ followers whose most glaring misfortune is being in the same social circle.
- D___ has been ostracized, and the image of his relationship with Christ has been shredded, by the pastor and the people of the church which he prayerfully, and with no small amount of turmoil, decided to leave.
- This direction of treatment by independent Baptists as a whole of questioners within their bodies absolutely must stop.
So, as you can imagine, I had quite a bit on my mind going into Sunday worship services. We attended our home church, where the guest preacher preached both services. We ate lunch with him, and the quartet we're part of sang in both services. It was fun to sing with the quartet again.
But the guest preacher couldn't stop talking about the great spirit of the services, and how blessed the audience was to be part of this church. He was absolutely right about the spirit of the services, but my observation, from knowing the lives of many of these people, is that the good spirit of the services doesn't extend into their daily lives. There is a lot of pain just under the surface, perhaps concentrated in a few people but present nonetheless, that isn't being dealt with in ways that honor Christ.
It scares me, and it's painful to observe.
So, hopefully you'll understand if I'm a little numb at the moment. I'm weary of analyzing the misdirections of the ones who are supposed to be showing me the way. I'm more anxious than ever for the opportunity to craft an expression of life together which is true to what God is showing me and some of my friends.
It'll be an independent Baptist church, but in the ways that are of significance, it won't look much like what they've come to be. As much as it pains me to say that, it's the truth, because I will die from the inside out otherwise.
I cried to thee, O LORD; and unto the LORD I made supplication.
What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?
Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me: LORD, be thou my helper.
Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;
To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever. - The Bible, Psalm 30:8-12
posted by pastor mike at 12:13 PM
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