final days forum

Listening to a Superior Voice

After the Summer of Rage, incivility continues to simmer throughout the U.S. -- on vociferous talk radio, cable news, websites, tell-all books and even in some pulpits. Unfortunately, the nation can't collectively make an appointment with Dr. Phil to explore what ails it, but as individuals we can seek help.

In the film, "Madea Goes to Jail,"  Tyler Perry's Madea resists anger management when she verbally jousts with Dr. Phil and behaves as if her fury is his fault.  The exchange between the two is dead-on because many of us behave with the same ghetto-fabulousness when we wear irritation like exposed skin...And it doesn't matter what neighborhood you come from for this term to apply.

We can roll our eyes and justify our raving, but in the end, anger obscures truth and barricades peace. Think back: hasn't this been true? We sought to hear God amid the crashing noise of of our circumstances, fumed at him as the mountains of life quaked about us, but when does he most often answer us? In the stillness. The prophet Elijah learned this and was privileged to witness how God is no less magnificent when his voice is still and small.

If we want to live like children of God, does that include changing our perspective on anger? Without learning to deal with anger daily, without learning that a quieter voice repels wrath, we will look as ridiculous as the prophets of Baal in Elijah's day. They screamed, hollered, cut themselves bloody and called out to a god who never answered.

Judy Howard Ellis

Is Your Church a Good Neighbor?

Welcome, originally uploaded by alborzshawn.

Let's say your church has been in a certain neighborhood for five, 10 or 15 years. Maybe it's been there for much longer and boasts stained glass windows where long-dead members donated to forgotten building programs. Whatever the age of your church, it has become a fixture in the community, a landmark people can identify.

Your church ministry today may have a popular radio program, TV broadcast or website, but have you studied the impact of your congregation on the surrounding neighborhood? Have you met the people in the houses you rush by when you're late for Bible study? Do you wonder how many neighbors come to your nationally advertised conferences featuring well-known ministry leaders?

Like never before, the tangible impact of the local church is critical. Effective local influence ripples outward to bring national change. The Great Recession has plagued many families and their communities, but has your church worked on the front lines? Have you unwittingly settled for a tepid ministry that lacks transformational power?

As you start your week, how about praying about these questions regarding your church and its influence in the larger community:

1. Does your church offer language courses so that you can interact with people in the surrounding neighborhood?
2. Do you seek opportunities to share pulpits with congregations that are smaller or larger than yours?
3. Is your church building open 24/7 or is it limited to scheduled "ministry" programs?
4. Have you surveyed the surrounding neighborhood to learn how they view your church as a neighbor?
5. Have you used social networking tools to reach untapped populations in your community?
6. Has your church used its grounds for a community garden that helps people buy produce locally and more cheaply?
7. Has your church offered literacy-related activities for youth?
8. Have you offered free leadership and career reinvention training for the unemployed and struggling businesses?
9. Has your church encouraged members to sacrifice one Sunday meal at a restaurant and use that cash to fund a local reputable nonprofit which helps people pay utility bills or locate housing in your area?
10. Does your prayer team pray as a group about local environmental issues that affect your neighbors?
11. Who would feel uncomfortable coming to your church and why?
12. Is your church recognized for its affiliation with specific political views or for its tirelessness in carrying out the mandate of God's kingdom?

What questions would you add?

Judy Howard Ellis

Why churches should join forces

Wolfville Baptist Church in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, the oldest continuing Baptist church in Canada. Photo by Bill Porter

What if neighborhood churches attempted real, stand-up-and-mean-something collaboration? Like sharing office space or the resources of a benevolence ministry? Maybe one sacrificial church can point a donor toward a needy congregation instead of swelling its own coffers. Others could share administrative staff, pricey computer software or a production studio. Three or four could start a credit union and host job fairs and offer career counseling.  Another team of churches could collectively provide temporary housing for people who've lost their homes.

Certainly this kind of cooperation is happening, but what if local churches made this kind of community-focused work the high-profile norm?

Call me an idealist; I accept the charge. Churches often operate in mini-spheres of particular doctrines, administrative structures and purposes. Fifty zillion bureaucratic, legal, business and cultural reasons argue nonstop against cooperation, but if a congregation claims the name of Christ and no other -- they are his. We will be held accountable for how we treat the sheep and shepherds of God's earthly pastures, even if we say:

"We were unequally yoked theologically. Not about Jesus. Just other stuff."

"They allow women to preach."

"That church is in a bad neighborhood." 

"That church is not like us."

"They speak in tongues."

"They don't speak in tongues."

"Their choir doesn't sing our kind of music."

"They can't be saved. They don't vote the same way we do."

"We can't work with that pastor. He's arrogant."

"We've got our own faithful tithers. Let them get their own."

Beyond steering clear of spiritual leaders and congregations corrupted by greed and other sins, and definitely beyond linking arms with leaders who are sketchy about who Jesus Christ is -- where authentic agreement about Christ emerges, ample opportunity exists to express cooperation laced with supernatural power.

The church is as effective as we are loving. People who do not share our convictions can sniff out phony affection like rain before a Texas storm. Unexpected and undeserved grace grabs their attention -- without a single placard raised in protest or one sarcastic segment on talk radio.

Judy Howard Ellis

A recession antidote: servanthood (Part 2)

vintage cafeteria scene, grandmother, originally uploaded by freeparking.

Fear marches across the land as a ruthless army of giants, but congregations nationwide can be fearless havens of peace. Churches are perfect hubs to generate amazing innovations that serve society. Sure, we can pass the potato salad and pour the coffee, but we can also share ideas and principles that will transform the generations.

Within the church lies boundless imagination. Unfortunately, some congregations lost their spark and their treasures were buried beneath the refuse of the cultural wars. Let's recover that imagination in every church house where Jesus is glorified as King!

Think of the seniors who fill the pews. We absently insult them with our condescension. We don't seek their wisdom or the direction they offer. With our youth, some congregations isolate them instead of letting young people blossom at the church's epicenter. Are we so weary we have forgotten the promise of youth? Unbridled aspiration prevents their hopes from being submerged by cynicism. Speaking of hopes, consider church members who have toiled for years at dead-end jobs for little pay. Churches can do more than accept their tithes and assign them to random ministries because warm, working bodies are needed in the ranks. Tap their creativity! Unimaginative bosses may ignore their contributions, but the local church never should.

The point is, churches, like no one else, can harness strengths like these and shape them into a powerhouse of influence. I mentioned five steps to do this in yesterday's post. Here are five more:

1. Tackle the needs of homeless people, on some level, in local areas. Churches can start by making sure every member in their church has shelter. They could work with nonprofit organizations and link homeowners with those who need to rent rooms. They could hold free seminars for those facing foreclosure. They also can support local shelters and raise awareness about their efforts.

2. Create a community hub for the arts. Perform the classics, not just Bible stories. The best of the classics have redemptive elements that offer a fresh way to share truth with those weary of of Bible-thumping, but hungry for biblical living. A strong arts presence reveals the artistic glory of the church and communicates truths that stick for a lifetime.

3. Create a hub for entrepreneurs. Support the self-employed and encourage others to generate multiple streams of income. Offer free workshops and seminars that train and motivate entrepreneurs. Invite successful entrepreneurs in the church to mentor and train those seeking to start a business.

4. Host lots of free events. Congregations certainly must practice fiscal stewardship, but they should not fear financial loss because they want to protect their bank account. This can include national speakers, concerts, health fairs, town hall meetings and food-related events. A local congregation need not go broke hosting free events, but it should increase its profile by providing activities that add value to their community's. A congregation's  resources are never determined by the financial mutations on Wall Street.

5. Increase customer service. Congregations should work hard to ensure that every usher, parking attendant, pastor, receptionist and ministry leader offers the best service. What people will remember when they visit a congregation is how they were treated. Customer service also extends beyond the sanctuary. How does the surrounding neighborhood view the congregation? Is the parking on Sundays a mess for drivers? Do the neighbors wish the church offered child care? What about ESL classes? Talk with the neighbors and find out.

Judy Howard Ellis

Dreaming about a radical church

Sleep, originally uploaded by Steven Fernandez.

What would happen if we no longer practiced church as usual?

Close your eyes and dream with me:

1. What if the church pursued welcoming, loving conversations about Jesus on social networking sites like Twitter, Plurk, and Facebook?  What if we saw opportunities on the Web to share Jesus, much like he seized chances to talk about his Father on the roads of Galilee?

2. What if the church didn't make God seem spooky, remote, and weird? Why not talk with people like we were regular people instead of robotic clerics agitated by our itchy hair shirts?

3. What if we took Jesus' words about the Holy Spirit seriously? The Bible says the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. What if we moved aside and watched the Spirit do his job?

4. What if the church did not act like the fashion police? Wehy can't we get our praise on even when the multi-pierced, the ghoulishly Gothic, the skimpily dressed, and the completely tattooed sit next to us in church?

5. What if we treated all sin as sin and didn't act as if lying, cheating, gossiping, backbiting, adultery, meanness, and gluttony got a pass in the Bible? Ahh. Jesus' words to the folks who wanted to stone the woman caught in adultery: He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.

6. What if we gave people food and bill assistance just because they asked for it? Some people will take advantage of our benevolence, but a lot of other folks would just love the church for helping them out during a rough time. Seems worth the risk to me -- just to see how God touches people and answers their prayers.

7. What if all the televangelists who typically ask viewers to "sow" into their ministry never asked for another dime? What if they urged viewers to sow into the church where they actually attend?

8. What if we actually believed in the expansive power of prayer? We could ask the Lord to heal and prosper our country instead of writing nasty, mean-spirited stuff on the Web and loudly protesting outside of people's homes?

9. What if we love people, regardless of how they vote in this presidential election? Think about it: civility the day after the election. And the church could offer the most civil environment of all.

10. What if we treated people with the grace God gives us? Unconditional love is wonderful to receive. Have we learned how to share it?

What are your dreams for the church?

 

Judy Howard Ellis

 

The passing of the past

Round the bend, originally uploaded by nugib.

When a girl I liked moved away from our neighborhood in East St. Louis, it was an early lesson about letting go. The girl was fun and sweet and from my viewpoint as a child, 24th Street seemed dimmer after she left. I couldn't stop her passing through my life and neither could she or our other neighborhood friend, who also did not want to see her go.

In life, there are many passings. And we mourn them. When both of my grandmothers died during the same summer after my college graduation, my family walked away from a life we once knew when we left Sunset Cemetery. We will see them again one day, but their time with us in the old way had passed.

When I once lost love, I had to re-orientate my sights to new dreams. When I changed jobs or relocated to other cities, I found my footing in new places. When new opportunities meant exchanging abundance for fewer material things, I learned simplicity. This is the captivating nature of letting go. New understanding is gained; freshly minted maturity is experienced; more profound empathy is shown.

One of the essentially paradoxical things about God is that he does not change in character, perspective, and ability, but his kingdom is anchored in constant change. He's always building, rebuilding, structuring, and restructuring. He's always loosening our moorings.

And we must not be offended by the King of Kings because he maneuvers in our lives this way. It's "craven fear" to do so. While writing this post I am reminded of the character in Hannah Hurnard's beloved book, Hind's Feet for High Places. Even the onery Craven Fear in Hurnard's story was transformed. May we allow God to lovingly guide us through these changes in life, no matter how painful, so that we also can be transformed.

Right now, America is experiencing a great passing of the past. That passing is more than acknowledging that a 720 FICO score and a decent down payment does not guarantee you a house. This passing of the past also is about more than who will occupy the White House in January. These are shadows reflecting the intense movements of heaven. Isaiah 43:19 is cited so often it sometimes seems cliche, but it is fitting here: Behold, God is doing a new thing. Will we not know it?

During this Jewish New Year, 5769, what we can't see is the extensive work of God. He's adjusting the perception of everyone to catch the expansive dream of the kingdom. He wants everyone to realize that kingdom-building  manifests in more ways  than overflowing church parking lots and television programs drawing millions of viewers. Indeed, the Father wants a great company, but they will likely resemble David's men, unlikely recruits who know their God and the demonstration of his power. 

These kingdom-seers display God's glory in the checkout line in the grocery store, and in the neighborhood business that gains a reputation for hiring as many people as possible instead of laying off workers to boost its bottom line. They are the small coterie of saints whose work among the incarcerated restores dozens upon dozens of families. Their labor is identified by miracles, not self-righteousness.

They don't fluctuate like the stock market when God carries them through one season and then the next with rapidity.  They travel his breakneck highways with joy.

Judy Howard Ellis
 

Link to Hannah Hurnard's book, courtesy of books.google.com; link to Isaiah passage courtesy of biblos.com; link to information about the Jewish New Year courtesy of http://joyofthetorah.org
link to David's men in 1 Samuel, courtesy of studylight.com

Jesus, the perfect supplement?

Jesus Christ is the must-have supplement for today's made-to-order religious practices. He is used like a healing herb or a trace mineral. Mix a tablespoon of Jesus into your daily religious smoothie and you're good to go. Jesus flavors any religion, belief system, principle or spiritual practice on earth. He is the binding agent, the innocuous role model for perfectly executed belief.

He's a very cool additive only when you peel away the messy crucifixion, that blood-as-sacrifice-for-sin stuff, His statements about being the only way to God, and that wild notion about resurrecting bodily. But for those who prefer their Jesus tame, the Jesus who taught about blood and sin is passive aggressive and His Daddy is a cosmic control freak.

For example, the crucified and risen Jesus doesn't flow with Oprah and Eckhart Tolle, author of the "A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose," and other self-made faith practices today. Faith is self-actualization, consciousness and an untethered spirituality that says: We have seen god and god is us.

(Courtesy of : lsim13 from YouTube.com.)

I'm a huge fan of Oprah and the way she embraces mass media to supply forums for a variety of people, interests, and ideas. Hosting a global webcast featuring Tolle is a brilliant use of today's technology and further proof that she is a master storyteller and entrepreneur. She has her fingertips on what matters so much to so many.

But "A New Earth" and other books that turn away from the crucified and risen Christ reveal not the greatest story ever told, but the greatest lie ever believed.

Long before Oprah became a beloved media personality, she was a person with a question. Oprah herself has said that when she heard a minister talk about a "jealous" God, she was disturbed by that description. The God she knew was loving, so how could God be jealous? Her question was real. Her curiousity was normal. Did anyone in her former Baptist church share with her about what a "jealous God" meant? Did one of the "mothers of the church" put her arms around her and explain the full story about the God of All Love?

Whether they did or not, Oprah's question was left to take unruly root.

More tomorrow about this.

Adopting a Starbucks groove at church

A corner in Starbucks
Originally uploaded by JasperYue

Starbucks knows how to keep those lattes coming. Wired.com reports that under a new agreement with AT&T starting this spring, coffee fans with Starbucks Cards will enjoy free Wi-Fi services for two hours in Starbucks locations, those without cards will receive two hours for $4, and $20 monthly memberships also will be provided.

The change is a smart one for Starbucks. Coffee drinkers have asked for free Wi-Fi, stocks for the Seattle-based company have wobbled, and rival McDonalds encroaches on Starbucks' turf with gourmet coffee offerings and redesigned restaurants.

Churches should take notes from Starbucks' playbook. Starbucks and other merchants understand they must be viewed as essential to their customers in order to sustain their success. Everything -- from the hours Starbucks coffee shops are open to the coffees they offer -- underscore the idea of being essential to a particular audience.

Has the church positioned itself to be essential to the communities it serves? Sure, some churches have opened coffee shops and bookstores, but are those outlets tailored to those who are "churched" or those who are not? This is not about creating a commercial focus for the church, but about creating a radically accessible one.

What if churches morphed into 24/7 operations, where anyone could come, day or night, for food, shelter, prayer, teaching or friendship? What would that congregation look like? How would this structure affect traditional worship services? How would this 24/7 church operation be staffed and financed?

It's something to dream (pray) about the next time you line up for a Starbucks latte.

A recession? Maybe it’s a holy opportunity

With all the talk about whether the U.S. is already in a recession or falling headlong into one, it's a great time for church communities to serve the nation.

Churches could step up their Crown Financial Ministries classes to teach good money use, host Q&A sessions with savvy financial experts within their congregations, survey and then address the financial needs of their members, increase benevolence funds, encourage members to collaborate with each other and partner with reliable mortgage lenders, bankers, realtors and businesses to help those snared in the housing crunch.

Ministries with enormous platforms on TV and the Internet could talk more about surviving and thriving when the economy goes south. They could specifically address handling finances and give a mike to those who don't mind describing their former money struggles and how God revealed powerful lessons for success.

Charlatan-led prosperity gimmicks should die off like parasites. Whether the gimmick is peddled by unsavory ministers or business people who deal with a sleight of hand, every financial idea should be tested by whether its ambition is to please the heart of God. Only the lasting financial, spiritual, physical and emotional wholeness that God offers should be sought, for He is not only the Giver of provision, He is Provision.

Now is not the time for Christians to allow a bunker mentality. We must talk about money. We must take care of our own homes and reach out to those within and outside our churches.  Those who are a whiz at coupon-saving, trading stocks, maintaining cars, shopping, explaining insurance, balancing checkbooks, running businesses, investing in real estate and scores of other skills should not hoard their gifts. Share them and refuse to judge the people you help. And for those who are on the receiving end, be humble enough to be taught.

Despite the hardships of the current economy, I believe fresh opportunities are on the horizon. Though stocks may plunge and the credit crisis worsens, those who know their God can and will do mighty exploits for Him.

Is a simple Gospel, well, too simple?

Lots of talk these days about whether Christian ministers -- especially those with television broadcasts -- are rightly dividing the word of truth. Did the minister sufficiently mention the name of Jesus? Did the sermon sound too much like a life-coaching session? Were enough biblical passages exegeted?

This tone of criticism within Christian circles is prevalent. But is that really the chief issue?

The Gospel stands for itself and is both simple and profound. We don't have to manipulate it -- either in trite motivational speaking  methods or in self-righteous theology-speak -- to help the Gospel make its point.

Besides, the onus of the Gospel's success within a human heart is not dependent on us at all. That's the work of the Father who woos us and the Holy Spirit who regenerates us.

If a minister just points to Jesus, should we not trust Jesus Himself to illumine any truth that minister may have shared?