Investing in Hope

One of my first favorite scriptures was Jeremiah 29:11: "For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future." I quoted this scripture often before I finally thought I should really read the book I so often quoted. I then found that Jeremiah was a pretty doom and gloom kind of guy! Where was the hope filled guy from 29:11? I didn't get very far into the book.

In seminary, we studied Jeremiah, particularly Jeremiah 32. In this passage Jeremiah buys a field. He tells the people that the land will be taken from them, and then he buys land. That tangible act was a symbol of hope. After preaching over and over that their sin would catch up with them, he didn't just say that hope still existed, he invested in that hope.

I have often found myself to be the youngest person at gatherings such as UMW, committee meeting, conference gatherings etc. (that is less the case now). As such, I am regularly asked if I see hope for the United Methodist Church.

As a young person in a more elderly church, I often hear people talk with despair about our world. There is almost a hope that Revelation may actually be coming to pass because people are so saddened and upset by the state of our world. People turn to me and want to know if I think that Revelation is coming.

Though I look at our Church and our churches and see many things that are dysfunctional, sinful, and irrelevant, though I look at our world and see many things that are dysfunctional, sinful, and shocking, I believe that God continues to have plans to prosper us and not to harm us. Plans to give us hope and a future. I believe that so strongly that I too chose a tangible symbol. I invest in the future with my son Micah. Micah, along with Isabella Graves, Wesley Hanover, Nora Masland-Sarani, Declan Stuntz, Claire Van Fleet, Miriam Irwin, and all the other precious babies born and to be born this year. This is our choice, our privileged, our promise. The future holds possibilities filled with hope for this world. God's Kingdom will come, and, God willing, John and Micah and I will get to help bring that kingdom here on earth.

Preacher's Self Presentation

It's interesting how something that is almost tangential or not central to a conversation, a book, or a classroom lecture can take hold of the listener. I can say that many times it is the Holy Spirit.

I don't remember where it was, probably in my preaching book, but I read a reflection that has been nagging at me. I've heard so many times that the pastor should talk about their weaknesses. They should not be afraid to show how they are not perfect. That they will be humanized. I think I've heard that so much that I forget that a congregation also needs to have confidence in the guidance of the pastor. Confidence that while the pastor is human, the pastor is also striving, and somewhat successfully, after the Christian Life.

The passage in the book referred to how as preachers and pastors we should not make ourselves out to be saints, but we also cannot constantly be harping on our weaknesses too. Of course I take this new conviction of balance and am afraid of all the negatives I've been sharing with my congregation. But they are good kind people and I trust that they see the good in me even if I'm not highlighting it. I will strive in the future to find a better balance. I need to make sure I'm also showing my spiritual gifts, strengths, learnings, and passion. I think I've got the other side down pretty well :)

Paradigm shifts

In his book A New Kind of Christian, Brian McLaren talks about paradigm change in this transition that we’re in. I don’t want to take the time to go into all about transition time vs. change, nor defend the idea of our time as one of transition and paradigm change (first because I’m not sure I know enough to do so, and second because of space). What struck me so much was this model of paradigm change. It starts open and comfortable, as that paradigm begins to feel claustrophobic we move into a kind of funnel. At the beginning of that funnel we primarily look backward at the original paradigm and how much it fails you. Further into the funnel we begin to look forward to what a new paradigm might be. And finally, hopefully we find ourselves in a new paradigm which will work better for us and for society for a time. This kinda describes the transition from modern to postmodern. We don’t all go thru this, we don’t go thru it at the same time, etc.

The amazing thing for me is in that funnel. I know plenty of United Methodists who are so frustrated with the church. They spend their time criticizing, complaining, and judging and quite frankly have irritated the hell out of me. How can we expect to be a force for good and change in the world for Christ if we are busy bickering with ourselves. It doesn’t make our faith very appealing. But this model that Brian McLaren describes allows me to have more sympathy for people in this stage. I always tried to remind myself that the church is a hard place and that people need an outlet, but it is more than that. People are dealing with wholesale change that so far has no complete recognizable paradigm. They see all the negatives of their current world and work, but have not seen the possibility and hope of a new paradigm. They are looking back and haven’t gotten that monkey off of their back, so to speak in order to look at something different. And in some ways, perhaps they are scared not just of their own change, but for the church itself. For if more of the church doesn’t make this shift, perhaps it will die.

Just for the record, I don’t believe it will die. I am filled with hope (at least at the moment) for the future. There are others like me, and like you, and like Brian McLaren out there who are seeing God in whole new ways. The Methodist church may lose some power and size, but it will learn to see and seek God in incredible new ways! In fact, it already is.

1 Corinthians Part 1

So two great insights from my reading this evening. No relation other than they are both from the Epistle of 1 Corinthians.

The first insight is in 1 Corinthians 10:13b. The Bible says "God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide for you a way out so that you may endure it." -- Previous to this the first part of this quote has been used in my life. As in: God won't test you beyond your strength. But that interpretation begs the question of honest, good, everyday Christians who are not able to endure sufferings but actually do break under them. They are crushed by death, unfairness, change, etc. These seem to contradict each other.

The point isn't that our trials can't crush us if we're good Christians. The point is that God will "provide for you a way out so that you may endure it." Somehow in our trying times there is a way to shift so that we can endure.

It isn't necessarily obvious or natural. It takes the eyes to see, perhaps the training to perceive, perhaps the assistance from good friends. If we are not looking, we may cling militantly to our trials hoping to endure. It is not always just our steadfastness, but also our willingness to see the way out, or I might say forward or toward comfort, that allows us to endure trials in Christ.

The second insight is more academic and it's late, so good night and God bless :)

Growing Through Brokenness

I'm not sure how well this fits in as lessons I'm learning, but probably is an area where God is going to be working on me.

I'm in two classes this semester that are challenging me. One is Leading Formation. This past week I stopped reading because I was upset. It brought up all these old hurts and tied them nicely to the present. Instead of helping me heal the past, and distance it from the present, it made me feel like the person I was back then. I felt very vulnerable in class today and I'm not sure where this vulnerability will lead. I want to leave myself open to God challenging me, but dang it hurts.
Then there's my Gospels in a Consumer Culture class. I'm really looking forward to it, but I also know that it's going to make me intentionally examine my relationship to a consumer culture. I may have to change because of it. I've had several experiences in the past that have almost led to change in this regard, I partly hope and partly fear that conviction that I feel may be coming from this class.

So overall, the last couple of days have left me feeling like this semester may be more challenging than I had planned. Not that you plan the kind of growth that breaks you open at your weak points and forces you to rearrange the pieces as you heal. I guess my hope is that I can trust in God to bring me through the process completely. I don't want to get stuck in the middle without a good healing process.