Out the Door

10 Provocative Questions: Q1: Theological Grounding & Spiritual Vitality

In response to the State of the Church report which was completed in 2007 Lovett Weems of Wesley Theological Seminary addressed a paper to the Council of Bishops.  He chose to include in his report "10 Provocative Questions" and his answer to them.  These are questions I believe are worth considering and after noting his response to them, I want to address them myself.

Question 1:  Can we  capture the Wesleyan power of being an evangelical church in a liberal tradition?

United Methodist core beliefs are clear, says the State of the Church report. There is remarkable consensus on key affirmations of Christian faith. There is also strong evidence of spiritual vitality across the church shown by extraordinary responses on questions of faith and core beliefs, as well as practices of Christian discipleship, including social justice.

There are variations of emphasis across global regions and within the United States. These differences should not overshadow the consensus, but they do point to the need for good Wesleyan Christian conferencing in which we honestly engage theological differences for mutual edification, knowing that no one perspective captures all of God’s wisdom.

United Methodists today appear to be in the tradition of Georgia Harkness, who spoke of herself theologically as an “evangelical liberal.” She believed that it was possible to combine “tolerance with decisiveness, open-mindedness with Christian conviction.” Most survey respondents would agree with her that the powerful communication of the gospel is “the most important task under God that any person can undertake.” The respondents also would affirm the call theologian Claude H. Thompson made years ago for evangelical renewal in the United Methodist Church, saying this is an hour when United Methodist evangelicals are called to eliminate the evils of war, poverty, and racism from our society.

Could this Wesleyan identity be captured in an inclusive vision of an evangelical church in a liberal tradition? We are an evangelical church. At the same time we are in a liberal tradition. We are the first to challenge assumptions. We are the first to open windows and doors to new ideas and possibilities when faith mandates it. Could such a vision that is both deep (in faith and piety) and open (to new needs and possibilities) sustain us over the years ahead?

I can think of few things which could strengthen the United Methodist Church more than recapturing the spirit of evangelical liberalism.  In our diverse society where people live all over the political, religious, and social-economic spectrum, there is no other denomination better positioned to do ministry in this brave new world than the UMC.  

In order to do that however balance must be found between evangelical and liberalism.  When I was a child, one of the games my friends and I would play on the teeter totter was to try to get the board to be perfectly balanced, so that neither one of us was higher or lower than the other.  The other game I played was to try to force my friend to the ground by pushing off as hard as possible so that I could be the highest up, all the while my friend was trying to do the same thing.  One doesn't need to be around the UMC for very long before figuring out which one of these games we're playing.

How much of an impact could we have on the world for Jesus Christ if we stopped playing the game of "I'm the highest" and really started to learn from one another?  Those on the evangelical side of the teeter totter need to listen and learn how to address the evils of war, poverty, and racism.  Those on the liberal side need to listen and learn how to live lives of holiness, piety, and discipline.  Is it possible for us to quit playing the power games and bring together the balance that is so much a part of our heritage?  If we could, people from every spectrum will find a home in the UMC.

God can't save us without our help

Jesus Christ died for the sins of the world.  Through his death and resurrection all people have the opportunity to be made right with God.  But that doesn't happen without our help, without our cooperation.  God doesn't force anyone to be saved from their sins.  God's love and respect for His creation is so great that while it is God's greatest desire that all be saved, God knows some will not be because they refuse to accept the gift of salvation.  The gift of forgiven is offered to all by the One who has the power to give it.  Like all true gifts, this one to may be accepted or rejected.  Therein lies our great power.  While it is God's will that all be saved, human beings have within themselves the power to thwart God's will.

John Wesley put it this way:

If you ask, Why then are not all men saved?  First, not because of any decree of God, not because it is his pleasure they should die.  Whatever be the cause of their perishing, it cannot be his will, if the oracles of God are true, for they declare, “He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance."  Secondly, what is the cause why all men are not save, namely, they will not be saved.  So our Lord expressly, "Ye will not come unto me that ye may have life" (John 5:40).  The power of the Lord is present to heal them, but they will not be healed.  (The Works of John Wesley VII, p. 381)

This is both good news and bad.  The good news is that everyone everywhere can be rescued from the wrath that is to come.  The bad news is not everyone will be.  It is up to each individual to decide for him or herself which it will be themselves.

Back to the Real World

On Sunday Julie and I returned to New Sharon after a two week vacation.  We didn’t make it home before we were back in the “real world,” having stopped at the ICU at Methodist Hospital on our way through Des Moines in order to visit a church member.  That was just the beginning of real world experiences.  Julie received a call today (Monday) informing her that one of her former students was killed in a knife fight last night.  There was other bad news that we encountered in our first 24 hours back from our time away.

I have found myself relating to Peter on the Mount of Transfiguration.  Peter went with Jesus, James and John up to a mountaintop to get away from it all.  There they saw Jesus conversing with Moses and Elijah and heard the voice of God speak.  Peter wanted to build shelters for them so they could stay on the mountain, but Jesus would have nothing of it.  Instead, Jesus led them back down into the real world.  When they had come down the mountain, they immediately came upon a father who daily faced the sorrow and fear of having a sick child.  Jesus compassionately delivered the boy from his affliction.

There’s a part of me that wants to stay away from the real world with its pain and sorrow.  It’s the part of me that wants to be blissfully ignorant and sheltered from what is happening around me.  However, my faith won’t allow me to do that.   My desire to be like Jesus outweighs my desire to get away from it all. 

Jesus understood that acts of compassion only happen when you’re with someone in need of deliverance.  For the boy and his father that meant being delivered from a physical ailment and doubt.  For the woman at the well it meant being delivered from self-loathing and an immoral lifestyle.  For the wee little man, Zacchaeus, meant being delivered from greed and a perverted self-interest.  Jesus came down off the mountain and back into the real world, for it is in the real world that one encounters hurting people in need of compassion. 

The same is true today.  We all need time away, but we can’t live our lives on one big ongoing vacation.  Those who claim the name of Jesus will do what Jesus did.  They will resist the temptation to stay uninvolved.  Instead, they will reach out to those they meet who are in need.  It’s not as easy and rarely as pleasant as being on vacation, but it adds meaning and purpose to life so that the real world is a good place to be, even in the midst of the bad.

Guns & Youth Ministry

One of our paid youth leaders is leaving us to take employment in another town.  That has forced us to consider how Cally's leaving will impact our youth ministry and what new steps need to be taken to keep things going great.  We've talked about a number of different approaches, but I have to admit, we never thought about offer assault weapons as an incentive to get kids to come.  I guess we're just not with it.  After all, it apparently is working for Windsor Hills Baptist Church.

OKLAHOMA CITY, OKla. - After one of its organizers suffered an injury, a church was forced to cancel a gun giveaway at a weekend youth event.

The Windsor Hills Baptist Church planned the giveaway as a way to draw new participants to the church's annual youth conference.

The gun in question: an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle.

Windsor Hills canceled the giveaway Friday evening after announcing that Pastor Emeritus Jim Vineyard, who was running the event, had suffered a foot injury and would be unable to attend.

A video posted on the church's Web site contains a shooting competition from the 2007 conference, which also included a gun giveaway.

Church leaders defended the decision to hold the event.

"I don't want people thinking. 'My goodness, we're putting a weapon in the hand of somebody that doesn't respect it who are then going to go out and kill,'" said Bob Ross, the youth pastor at Windsor Hills. "That's not at all what we're trying to do."

Past attendees also defended the conference, stating the focus is on helping teens find faith, and not on firearms.

"You make a lot of new friends down here. You get to meet new people," said Vikki Goncharenko, who attended the conference. "There's a bunch of things going on."

Ross said the gun, which had already been purchased for the event, will be given away at next year's conference.

HT: Churchandworld.com

It's Free

I subscribe to a RSS feed from Give Away of the Day.  It offers free downloads of various software.  I've found a couple useful.

Before I decide to try the give away of the day software I always read the comments others have made.  The wide spectrum of complements and complaints never ceases to amaze me.  One person thinks the program is the best thing since sliced bread (though no one uses that exact phrasing, I'm showing my age again).  Another person thinks the same program is a pile of garbage and a waste of time.

As I read the comments I ask myself, "who do I believe?"  Being one who believes there no such thing as a free lunch, I tend to put more credence in the negative comments.

I wonder if this is the reason so many people have trouble wrapping their minds around God's grace.  We tend to put a value on things based on what it has cost us, and not just in monetary ways.  If I spend a lot of hours finishing a woodworking project, it takes on an importance which far outweighs its actual worth, because it cost me my labor. 

It's this kind of thinking that leads many people to believe they must earn God's favor.  If it's worth having, and obviously I think it is, then it's worth working for.  But grace cannot be earned, it's free.  Grace is the most contra-intuitive thing in all the universe.  The most valuable thing we can ever possess is the give away of the day.

If you haven't "downloaded" God's grace for yourself, take the word of certified skeptic that this is one that you don't want to pass up.  And it's as easy as saying to God, "God, help me!  Save me by your grace."

Why we suffer

I came across this little paragraph from an unknown author in a book I’m reading:

Suffering is not God’s desire for us, but it occurs in the process of life.  Suffering is not given to teach us something, but through it we learn.  Suffering is not given to punish us, but sometimes it is the consequence of our sin or poor judgment.  Suffering does not occur because our faith is weak, but through it our faith may be strengthened.  God does not depend on human suffering to achieve his purposes, but sometimes through suffering his purposes are achieved.  Suffering can either destroy us, or it can add meaning to our life.  (quoted from Seeing Gray in a World of Black & White by Rev. Adam Hamilton)

All of us will be confronted by suffering and pain sometime in life.  I’ve often heard people say in the midst of some tragedy, “Everything happens for a reason.”   It’s a way of saying “God is in control therefore everything must have a purpose even if we don’t know what it is.”  The way I see it, if God controls everything, he’s not doing a very good job of things. 

How can it be God is in control when people continually are diagnosed with cancer, heart attacks, strokes and a host of other afflictions?  How can it be God is in control when tens of thousands of children die every day from hunger or easily treatable diseases?  How can it be God is in control when wars and pestilence ravage our world year after year?  How can it be God is in control when 6,000 American teenagers die in car accidents every year?   There must be another answer besides saying that all these things happen to fulfill God purposes.

God is good and his lovingkindness never fails.  There must be a way of reconciling the belief that God loves those he created and the suffering all humans experience.  It’s impossible to come anywhere close to answering the question of suffering in a few short paragraphs.  Here are a couple of ideas though.

First, God created the universe to operate within the laws of physics.  The same gravity which keeps us all from floating off into space, can result in pain if we fall.  Sometimes the laws of nature work in our favor, sometimes they work against us.  God does at times intervene and supersede these laws, but not very often.  That’s why those times are called miracles and not everyday occurrences.

Second, we live in a world where individuals have free will.  As a result, we may suffer because of the choices that other people make.  God does not always protect us from the sinful behavior of others or of our own.  God gives people the freedom to drink and drive.  God gives people the freedom to smoke cigarettes, eat fatty foods, and overindulge in sweet treats.  But with those kinds of choices may come consequences that cause suffering. 

Thirdly, we live in a world where evil forces from the spiritual realm conspire against us.  I certainly don’t believe that there’s a demon under every rock ready to ambush us.  On the other hand, the Bible is clear that there is one who comes “only to kill, steal, and destroy.” (John 10:10)

God leaves it to us to live within the physical laws of the world, to live in ways that don’t cause harm to others or ourselves and to do battle in the heavenlies.  Moreover, God does not leave us all alone.  God upholds us by the power of his Spirit and gives to us grace and mercy, so that in the midst of our suffering we may turn to him and find strength and peace.

Something worth celebrating!

Julie & I are still flying high following the engagement of our son Josh to his friend Erika.  They've been dating for a little over a year and we absolutely adore her.  They are a lot of fun to be with.  Julie & I haven't quite got used to the idea of our son being of marrying age.  Josh had asked Erika's father's permission to marry her before he asked her.  Not sure where he got that old fashion chivalry, but it appears he's ready to take on the responsibility of being a husband.

They met at UNI through Camp Adventure which provides camping and day care for tens of thousands of military and foreign service personnel around the world.  This summer Josh will be directing a camp in Brussels, while Erika will be in England.  We're very proud of their service to those who give so much for our nation!

They both still have some schooling left to complete, but that's not stopping them from moving forward with wedding plans for next May.  They've already asked me to conduct the wedding.  Sure makes this old dad feel mighty good.

How blessed our lives our because Josh and Erika are part of our family.  We thank God for both of them!

Still a United Methodist

Every four years I wonder if I can remain a United Methodist.  I wait with baited breath to see if the General Conference will remain true to the scriptures or will give into the pressure of the relativists. I'm very happy to say that, God willing, I will be a part of the UMC for at least another four years.

I have said for twenty years that if the UMC ever changes it's stance on homosexuality, I'd would find some other place else to serve the Lord.  The real issue isn't homosexuality, but the authority of scripture.  Some have tried to twist the Bible's words around to their own meaning, when in fact what the Bible has to say is clear.  Thankful the majority of the delegates to the General Conference still hold to the authority of God's word and have defeated another assault on our church's beliefs.  United Methodist still believe that homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching.

That truth should not keep the church from reaching out to gay and lesbian individuals or allowing them to participate within the life of the church with some exclusions.  I believe that unmarried heterosexual couples who are living together are doing something which is incompatible with Christian teaching.  That hasn't prevented me from ministering to and with them with some exclusions.

The reason it is important for the UMC to retain it's stance about homosexuality, is because there are those who would discount the teachings of the scriptures and say what God calls sin isn't sin.  This must not happen.  Thanks be to God it hasn't and I get to stay a United Methodist. 

General Conference begins with a picture of contrasts

Only a couple of days of General Conference have passed and already there have been examples of the contrasts that exist within the UMC.  On the one hand there's the story of Katherine Commale:

When Katherine Commale learned at age 5 that—somewhere in the world—a child dies from mosquito-borne malaria every 30 seconds, she said, “Mom, we need to send them bed nets right away.”

Her mother, Lynda, agreed. Now age 7, Katherine has collected more than $40,000 to send insecticide-treated sleeping nets to Africa as part of the Nothing But Nets campaign, supported by the people of The United Methodist Church.

In a convention center arena filled with thousands of delegates and guests, Katherine told the 2008 United Methodist General Conference that she wants “everyone who needs one to have a bed net.”

The brown-eyed youngster was introduced April 24 as a sign of hope in a denomination besieged in recent decades with steady U.S. declines in the numbers of members, worship attendance, professions of faith and baptisms. In 2006, the average age of United Methodists was over age 50, while less than 4 percent of its clergy was under the age of 35.

“Thank you for being a witness, a model for the rest of us,” Bishop John Hopkins told Katherine on the assembly stage as the audience applauded.  (UMNS)

On the other hand there's the story of Drew Phoenix.

Here we have stories about a child who has a vision far bigger than her years and an adult whose vision is a self-centered quest for "wholeness."  One makes me want to stand up and cheer and the other hang my head and weep.  One makes me think that the UMC has a future, the other that we are doomed as a denomination.

Let us pray that as GC goes forward we'll hear more stories like Katherine's and less like Drew's.

Blessed are Those Who Hunger and Thirst for Righteousness

All the good things of this world will never bring us satisfaction or contentment.  Only those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied.

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