More of Less Activity: In Favor of Spiritual Disciplines

Silence. Solitude. Meditation. Fasting. Simplicity.
These are as strange and alien concepts to the life of Christians in the West as a business man in a tree. At best such practices are odd, optional or only for super-Christians. Or worse, they could be construed as punitive.


However our historic Christian faith grew in grace and power as everyday believers and leaders practiced spiritual disciplines. 


On purpose. With astonishing results.


Return to Spiritual Disciplines
When I started in ministry as a 23-year-old Jr Hi Pastor just off the road with a Christian band, voice mail and pagers were cutting edge. We communicated only via phone and paper. Now we have social media, cell phones and the internet that invades every spare corner of our lives.  


My pastoral bosses encouraged me to read Foster's Celebration of Discipline and made me go on monthly prayer retreats. I did not like it at first. Now I am so glad someone showed me how and why spiritual disciplines are vital for ministry. It was not easy for me to do.


It showed me ministry is impossible to do. For me. I need Jesus to do it. In fact, Jesus said in  John 14:12-14 that we would do greater works than He did. By asking Him to do what He can do through us.


Disciplines are inconvenient, frustrating and seem counter-productive. But we managed to get ministry accomplished before cell phones, iPads and wi-fi. Apparently, even Jesus and the church ministered pretty well focusing on prayer, discipleship and a simple life.


It leads to this leading question: what kind of boundaries (if any) do you have now between the urgency of everything on your phone or tablet or laptop and your relationship with Christ? I fear our little space for Jesus makes us a mile wide and an inch deep. I'll even say it may make us hypocrites on par with Pharisees.


Will you be one who says, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or naked or a stranger' because we were too busy virtually connecting with people? (Matthew 25).


Expect More from Parents and Pastors
A pastor friend of mine just posted the following:

(Name) is going off the grid for a week for a silent retreat. Yup. No cell, not FB, no Angry Birds, no TV to numb or distract me. No agenda, not planning, no strategizing- just a whole week to meet with Jesus. I'll either go completely crazy or meet Jesus. We'll see.

I applaud his decision! And I say MORE of LESS!


More of less should be normal. Not considered newsworthy or radical or neat if you can spare the time. 


Don't you want to meet Jesus, no matter what it takes? 


What We Need
Our churches in Atlanta and in the West need more power of the Holy Spirit. More prayer and intercession. More trust in God than trust in skill and effort. What we need more grace-filled discipline.


When I parachuted in to do a scratch multi-ethnic church plant, there were a million things to do, but I taped a quote from Eugene Peterson to my computer monitor. 


It says, 'Busyness is laziness.' Busyness is substituting the good things for the highest, most excellent things. Meeting with Jesus ought to be our most excellent task. 


Do I get too busy? Yes. Am I not getting enough done? You'd have to ask the leaders of my church and our church planting network.


I do not hold myself up as an example. I hold up Jesus as FAR MORE WORTHY of our time and pursuit than anything else - including ministry, comfort and child-raising.


Pastors, fathers, mothers, your church and your family need you to turn off the 24/7 distractions and meet with Jesus - regularly, purposefully, intentionally. Replace the good things with excellent. Quiet, solitude, simplicity, fasting will deepen your experience of Jesus' grace.


This is not earning your salvation. This is experiencing the transformation Jesus' wrought by His salvation.


It's hard at first. But it's the best thing you can do with your time.

How The Help Helped Us Become (More) Bi-Cultural

On vacation in July, my wife and daughters all read The Help. and I'm man enough to say I read it too. Though all the main characters are women, it isn't 'just a chick book' but it's a rather a stimulating book about our recent past prior to and during the civil rights movement. Another pastor I respect wrote a great review I don't need to repeat.

I wanted to comment on the tag line for the movie. It's change begins with a whisper. But I think the result of 8 or 10 women in our English-speaking congregation reading and discussing The Help for their book club has revealed and spurred on some change. And it shows how we are making progress in our mission to be a justice-seeking, reconciling, bi-cultural, multi-ethnic church.


The Setting of Our Change
Sunday July 31, we got back from vacation to witness an historic Sunday for Crosspoint Encuentro Church. Our Pastor to Hispanics for the last few years, Hector Guzman, an immigrant from Mexico City, preached in Spanish to our English-speaking congregation for the first time. (He was translated by a 2nd generation Puerto Rican man in our church). He spoke as one who knows us well and who loves us crazy Americans but had some good corrections and some needed insight into our vision to be unified - one church two congregations. He was right on and we needed to hear from him!


The Background of Our Change
When we started 8 years ago, the vision was always for a multi-ethnic church. But, as you may know, I'm a white guy from Tennessee. I really had nothing in my family (except some racially-mixed adopted cousins but that is a whole other story) or in our staff to show visibly our desire to be not 'just another white church.' So we just kept holding the door open, telling all the people who visited (most of whom were white) that it's our vision and aspiration to be a church of many nations, races and languages.


So miraculously, three years into the church plant, God brought some bi-lingual people - the Mateos, Santiagos, Rodriguezes - and through them, six years in, the Lord sent us the Guzmans to start a second Spanish-speaking congregation.


The Problem with Change
It is a challenge to start being a bi-cultural church after its always been a mono-cultural church! We had been somewhat multi-cultural and multi-racial in our first six years but adding a second language requires a significant amount of  work and sacrifice so that we can truly be ONE church, instead of two churches that like each other.


Over the years we have held combined worship services. I spent three weeks at language school improving my Spanish. I attend all the Encuentro worship services I possibly can. In our English worship services, we sing one song a week with Spanish. Some of our people are making friends slowly during our education hour when both congregations are in the building together. We send a van around to pick up families. But it seems like we have a long way to go to be unified like a family in Christ.


The Help is Helping Us Change 
We are beyond whispering now! When these ladies read and discussed this book, I was told it led to some deep and perhaps surprising discussion! When Lisa Payne spoke to me after hearing Hector preach, I was shocked at what they had discussed the night before at their The Help discussion.


She said it made them ask, 'Do we do this same sort of thing today? Are we prejudicial in our treatment of Hispanics? What is it like to raise children in a sub-dominant culture?' Wow. Wow!


Only the gospel could have prepared all these English-speaking women (who are quite diverse themselves) to look at themselves and ask such an honest and hard questions!


And only pressing into the Gospel and Scripture and each others' lives will lead us to further answers about the issues. I am deeply excited about how The Help discussion is helping us make progress!


We Aren't All Better Now - But We are Changing at Different Speeds
And now more people are investing themselves in the questions, the issues and the struggle to be united as a diverse church. As your pastor, it's so encouraging to see!

1. One Saturday after their The Help discussion, the ladies book club re-assembled to invite Hector and Cecy and me discuss issues immigrants face living under a dominant culture. The answers were not neat or easy. It makes us uncomfortable. But it was good. (more in future posts).
2. Pastor Jose Mateo (who is a 2nd generation Puerto Rican) just joined our pastoral staff as a volunteer to develop Outreach and Discipleship in our two congregations. Though he thinks and speaks English mostly, he can bridge both cultures in a way that neither Hector nor I can.
3. Sunday 4 people who's primary language is Spanish will lead 18 English-speakers in beginning to learn or improve their Spanish. Our hope is this will develop an appreciation for each other's lives, cultures, families, worship songs and maybe deeper friendships as we learn to obey the Lord together.
4. Next month, in our bi-monthly combined worship service, Hector will preach instead of me.
5. I posted a resolution some of us have made about welcoming immigrants into our church. Its posted here on this blog.

I wonder what else God will do with and through Crosspoint Encuentro as we continue following Him together?

A Resolution about Welcoming Immigrants into Our Church

Over the last few years as we have sought to become a truly bi-lingual and mulit-cultural church, it has come to our attention that there are few churches, in our denomination anyway, who have any official written statements that welcome Hispanics (yes, even people without documents) into their churches. There is a fertile and strategic mission field right here in our city!


I know we are stepping into a hornets nest, but since we have many immigrants in our church membership and we want to reach more, we realized we need to start thinking and writing about this issue from a pastoral perspective. The recent Georgia law House Bill 87 (HB87) and the heated argument about immigration and deportation has only sped up the process for us. 


Scripture has much to say about immigrants, sojourners or aliens. So this resolution starts with a 16-point summary of what the Bible says about immigrants. The nine resolutions are our attempt to address some key issues first in our church, Crosspoint Encuentro Church.


I would be interested in talking with others who have or want a similar statement about welcoming immigrants into their churches.
_______________________

May 25, 2011

A Resolution from Concerned Pastors and Elders of Crosspoint Encuentro Church

Regarding Welcoming Immigrants into our Church

Whereas 

1. God is the Sovereign King over all the earth and all governmental authority is subject to His authority and rule,God, after the Fall, subjected Adam and Eve to an immigrant status upon removal from Eden, (Genesis 3:23) and,
2. God sent Abram to be an immigrant with his family (Gen. 12:2) sojourning in a strange land, then made His covenant with Abraham while he was an alien (Genesis 17:9),
3.  the children of Israel, through God’s divine providence, were immigrants in Egypt for generations (Gen. 50:22-26), were led out of Egypt by Moses, an immigrant (Ex. 2:22) and celebrated the first Passover in Egypt with converted strangers and sojourners (Ex. 12:43ff) who were led out of Egypt with Israel.
4.  God audibly and repeatedly commanded His people to give aliens/sojourners with them Sabbath rest (Ex. 20:10; 23:9, 12), identified them as former aliens and commanded His people to not mistreat or oppress sojourners/aliens among them (Ex. 23:9),
5.  God commanded His people to maintain the same regulations for non-native born people as native-born (Num. 9:14 and Num. 15) and required equanimity in temple worship (Lev. 17 and 19),
6.  God charged the courts of His people to judge righteously between fellow countrymen and aliens living among them (Deut. 1:16) and promises to defend aliens along with the fatherless and widow because He loves the alien and provides for them through the generosity of His people both directly and through the tithes of His people (Deut. 10:18, 24:14-21, 26:12-13),
7.  God curses the man who withholds justice from the sojourner, as well as the fatherless and widow (Deut. 27:19),
8.  Christ Jesus immigrated to earth from heaven,
9.  in His humanity Christ was an immigrant, persecuted by his fellow countrymen,
10.  we were all alienated from God and strangers to the covenants of promise without hope except through God’s grace by faith alone (Eph. 2:12)
11.  through Christ’s sacrifice in our place, He became our peace, made all believers one, broke down the dividing wall of hostility, created in Himself one new man, and by His reconciling work on the cross will make all things new in heaven and on earth by His blood (Eph 2: 14ff, Col. 1:20-22)
12.  his people are and will be from every nation, tribe, tongue and people united in Him, heirs and sons – neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female (Gal. 3:26-29),
13.  all of God’s people are citizens of heaven first and citizens of a nation on earth second (Phil. 3:20)
14.  there is no human governmental authority outside of God’s sovereign will and all government is established by God (Rom. 13:1-7) but does not supersede the government of God,
15.  legal status is not a requirement for salvation or church membership,
16. ministers and elders of God’s church have a moral duty to speak against injustice.

We Resolve…

1.      We resolve to pray for immigrants and their families out of concern for their souls and well-being. We will pray as well for our US governing authorities – local, state & federal – who are responsible to God for their personal, legislative, executive (including enforcement) and judicial decisions in regard to justice and mercy for all people.  We will urge people to pray for the US electorate to consider immigration issues according to God’s Word so that His Word is exalted and obeyed as US immigration policy is debated and decided.  And equally important, we will pray for other nations’ governing authorities who will also one day answer to God.        

2.      We resolve to welcome all immigrants into our church for relief, assistance, development and the hearing of the gospel.

3.      We resolve to accept anyone who meets the requirements of faith in Christ alone by faith alone, they shall be welcomed into full membership in our church, regardless of legal status before the US government or any state in the Union.

4.      We resolve to disciple and train immigrants to ‘glorify God and enjoy Him forever’ and treat them with dignity as image bearers of God.

5.      We resolve to prepare all church members and attenders, whether immigrants with status or without, or citizens of the US, to live as missionaries wherever God may, in His divine providence, send them to live, work and worship Him.

6.      We resolve to protect and teach all children, regardless of status or citizenship, to love God, receive Christ by faith and follow the doctrines of our holy religion.

7.      We resolve to work for the protection of the weak, oppressed and alien during legal proceedings and to urge our political representatives to develop a just and equitable means for immigrants whose status has expired to be reconciled and/or acquire legal status according to the laws of the USA.

8.      We resolve to educate English-speakers in our church about the issues, challenges, problems and struggles for immigrants and to educate Spanish-speaking congregants about their rights and duties as a sojourner in the USA.

9.      We resolve to prepare any immigrants under our care who are not currently under proper status to comply with the laws of the US and if they are unable to rectify their status, prepare them for the potential return to their home nation and accept these consequences peaceably and with grace.

Under the Grace of God and to His Glory Among All Nations,

Jim Moon, Jr. – Pastor, Crosspoint Encuentro Church Smyrna GA

Hector Guzman – Pastor, Crosspoint  Encuentro Church Smyrna GA

Jim Payne – Pastor, Crosspoint Encuentro Church Smyrna GA

Gordon Hwang – Elder, Crosspoint Encuentro Church Smyrna GA

'It's All Good' Tolerance Trend in Morality

"Whatever makes you feel good."
"I'm not judging."
"It's your life and your choices. There are no absolutes."


All sound so tolerant but really aren't tolerant of anyone who disagrees or takes exception to them.


And the irony is the last quote is this: The statement about absolutes IS an absolute.

 Barna comments on the fifth mega-trend in current religion and Christianity: 

The postmodern insistence on tolerance is winning over the Christian Church.Our biblical illiteracy and lack of spiritual confidence has caused Americans to avoid making discerning choices for fear of being labeled judgmental. The result is a Church that has become tolerant of a vast array of morally and spiritually dubious behaviors and philosophies. This increased leniency is made possible by the very limited accountability that occurs within the body of Christ. There are fewer and fewer issues that Christians believe churches should be dogmatic about. The idea of love has been redefined to mean the absence of conflict and confrontation, as if there are no moral absolutes that are worth fighting for. That may not be surprising in a Church in which a minority believes there are moral absolutes dictated by the scriptures. 

The challenge today is for Christian leaders to achieve the delicate balance between representing truth and acting in love. The challenge for every Christian in the U.S. is to know his/her faith well enough to understand which fights are worth fighting, and which stands are non-negotiable. There is a place for tolerance in Christianity; knowing when and where to draw the line appears to perplex a growing proportion of Christians in this age of tolerance.

Who wants to be tolerated anyway?


Don't you want MORE from life than being tolerated? I want to be loved.

Real love requires constancy. It requires truth and faithfulness. Or it was only love to the degree that one was tolerated.


Jesus Christ said, 'Greater love has no one than this than he lay down his life for a friend.' And then the next day, he did just that. He laid down his perfectly obedient life for sinners.


And that required a perfect morality in order to display a proper love. that is the Truth and the Love the church is called to demonstrate in every culture.

Word to My Church about Youth Group Going to the Movies

Today our youth group leader sent this email out to our parents about seeing X-Men First Class and it provided a great teaching opportunity. Hope it helps you.

Gene said: I know I've told quite a few people this, but just so everyone's on the same page - A couple years ago, we went as a group to see Transformers 2, only to be uncomfortably surprised by the amount of inappropriate material contained in what should have just been a good movie about giant robots. That seems to be a recurring theme, unfortunately.

That's why we no longer go to the movies as a [sponsored] group activity. However, we're not taking any kind of stand against movies; we're just leaving the ball in your court!

I've heard varying reports of the amount of questionable material in X-Men: First Class. So, please check any of the various reviewing outlets and handle the situation as you would any other movie your

family would see.

______________________________

Pastor Jim's response and follow-up:  

Thanks!Hey youth parents, I'll take a risk here and make some comments.

Elizabeth and I saw this Xmen movie. It was a very entertaining movie for adults but the PG-13 rating is there for a reason. There is no explicit nudity but women are scantily clad in more than one scene. I think the Lord's name was taken in vain F word was used but not excessively. The violence level is high but it is based on a good v. evil theme.

Websites like MovieGuide will give you superb details. I have written for them in the past and highly recommend them as THE MOST THOROUGH REVIEWS. (save the link on your computer. You'll use it!) 

If you as an adult like seeing movies, the details can spoil surprises.

So now you are asking, 'Why does my pastor and his wife see a movie like this and/or let their children see movies like this?' Good question.

1) About children and teenagers. We don't try to over-protect our children. We give them choices and talk through those choices with them when they are young teens because they are going to have to stand on their own as adults in a few short years. Check out the recent sermons on parenting if you missed them.

We were MUCH more careful and had age limits for certain movie ratings and enforced them consistently with all 3 of them. Elysia is almost 16 and she still has not been allowed to see an R rated movie.

We thought 13 was a good time to start seeing pg13 movies and then discussing the content. (Movieguide is great at helping you as a parent recognize the worldview and moral teaching of a movie - even 'safe' movies like 'Free Whilly' (it was about a boy and a whale) needed to be discussed because it promoted a pantheistic point of view!)

You as parents must lead your children. Remember the sermon about parenting? We must support each other's decisions without condemnation.

2) About us as adults. This gets a little dicey if you want a pastor who follows all the rules really well. It's even more complicated because we have people from different nations, backgrounds, convictions and upbringings in our church. But let me plow on.

I am personally convinced that seeing movies is an area of personal liberty, like smoking or drinking alcohol. You may not be at the same place that I am and I will be happy to discuss with you.

Part of our decision to see movies or do other worldly things is to be missional to my friends. It is how I interpret the 'become all things to all people' and 'be in the world but not of it' in Scripture.

Many of my friends whom I love and want to receive Christ will see this movie and I want to build bridges to them.

Does it trouble me when women are portray as objects in movies? Yes. A lot. Do I personally struggle with lust? Yes. That is why I see movies with my wife. We talk about stuff I struggle with and she helps me by being my only source of beauty and satisfaction.

3) What does this mean for you?

Be wise. Talk to other elders and fathers about their views of personal liberties and get brothers (and your wife if you have one) to hold you accountable. And train up your children to be wise.

Train them to talk back to the message of the movie - or the video or book or blog or FB chat.

Be missional. Do what you can do to reach your friends who are lost without Jesus. Be as normal as you can without hurting your conscience.

Trust God and talk with your church. The Lord will be faithful to His promises and we will be faithful to each other and learn together how to raise our children together.

Carson's Solemn Vows and Those Taken Before God Between Crosspoint Encuentro and Her Officers

Last Sunday April 3, 2011, I was part of the commission to ordain and install my friend Rev. Carson Pittman (front row, 2nd from left) as Associate Pastor of Atlanta Westside Presbyterian Church. 

As I read the vows on the screen behind Carson, as I heard Pastor Walter read them aloud, Carson could barely keep it together. His sincerity caused me to look into my own heart. I was struck by the depth and significance of these vows. Carson takes this so seriously and so should we all. He was moved to tears several times throughout the night. This man's overwhelmed state got to me. I'm an easy mark when it comes to Jesus and His church. 

I was not the only one moved by this holy moment. As the Westside congregation, a church I helped give birth to, I was equally moved by the depth and meaningful sincerity of the vows taken by the congregation. It took me back to the day in January 2007 when Crosspoint made these same vows. I too was moved to tears. 

And I am again as I write these words.

Church, this is deep.

God is calling forth a movement of His Holy Spirit in some new churches in Atlanta and He is crossing hereto seldom approached barriers. In these churches Jesus' gospel is all the good news that matters. Not race, not class, not ability, not looks, not power, not hipster coolness. Jesus is King. And He's awesome.

Sunday April 10, I will be referring to the following vows. Read them. Think about them. It may seem boring at first. But think of what this means.

Consider again (or for the first time) the covenant, the trust and the honor we have of being a church so loved by our Savior Jesus Christ and so well led by His Sovereign Kingship.

1. Vows Taken Before God by the Officers of Our Church and Declarations about Their Roles

  A. All Officers (Elders and Deacons) Take These Same Ordination Vows:

1. Do you believe the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, as originally given, to be the inerrant Word of God, the only infallible rule of faith and practice?

2. Do you sincerely receive and adopt the Confession of Faith and the Catechisms of this Church, as containing the system of doctrine taught in the Holy Scriptures; and do you further promise that if at any time you find yourself out of accord with any of the fundamentals of this system of doctrine, you will on your own initiative, make known to your Presbytery the change which has taken place in your views since the assumption of this ordination vow?

3. Do you approve of the form of government and discipline of the Presbyterian Church in America, in conformity with the general principles of Biblical polity?

4. Do you promise subjection to your brethren in the Lord?

(Book of Church Order Chapter 21 Paragraph 5 and Chapter 24 Paragraph 5)

  B. Teaching Elder’s Take These Distinct Ordination Vows:

1. Have you been induced, as far as you know your own heart, to seek the office of the holy ministry from love to God and a sincere desire to promote His glory in the Gospel of His Son?

2. Do you promise to be zealous and faithful in maintaining the truths of the Gospel and the purity and peace and unity of the Church, whatever persecution or opposition may arise unto you on that account?

3. Do you engage to be faithful and diligent in the exercise of all your duties as a Christian and a minister of the Gospel, whether personal or relational, private or public; and to endeavor by the grace of God to adorn the profession of the Gospel in your manner of life, and to walk with exemplary piety before the flock of which God shall make you overseer?

4. Are you now willing to take the charge of this church, agreeable to your declaration when accepting their call?  And do you, relying upon God for strength, promise to discharge to it the duties of a pastor? (BCO 21-5)

  C. Ruling Elders’ and Deacons Take These Distinct Ordination Vows:

1. Do you accept the office of ruling elder (or deacon, as the case may be) in this church, and promise faithfully to perform all the duties thereof, and to endeavor by the grace of God to adorn the profession of the Gospel in your life, and to set a worthy example before the Church of which God has made you an officer?

2.   Do you promise to strive for the purity, peace, unity and edification of the Church? (BCO 24-5 (#4 &6))

  D. At the conclusion of the Ordination of Ruling Elders and Deacons, the Following is Declared: 

I now pronounce and declare that ____________________ has been regularly elected, ordained and installed a ruling elder (or deacon) in this church, agreeable to the Word of God, and according to the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church in America; and that as such he is entitled to all encouragement, honor and obedience in the Lord:  In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.  Amen. (BCO 24-5)

  E. At the Ordination of a Teaching Elder, the following is Declared:

I now pronounce and declare that ____________________ has been regularly elected, ordained and installed pastor of this church, agreeable to the Word of God, and according to the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church in America; and that as such he is entitled to all encouragement, honor and obedience in the Lord:  In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.  Amen.  (BCO 21-7)

2. Congregations’ Vows Taken Before God at the Ordination of Officers:

  A. Vows Taken by Congregation in Receiving/Calling a Teaching Elder:

1. Do you, the people of this congregation, continue to profess your readiness to receive _________________, whom you have called to be your pastor?

2. Do you promise to receive the word of truth from his mouth with meekness and love, and to submit to him in the due exercise of discipline?

3. Do you promise to encourage him in his labors, and to assist his endeavors for your instruction and spiritual edification?

4. Do you engage to continue to him while he is your pastor that competent worldly maintenance which you have promised, and to furnish him with whatever you may see needful for the honor of religion and for his comfort among you? (BCO 21-6)

  B. Vows Taken by Congregation in Receiving Ruling Elders and Deacons:

Do you, the members of this church, acknowledge and receive this brother as a ruling elder (or deacon), and do you promise to yield him all that honor, encouragement and obedience in the Lord to which his office, according to the Word of God and the Constitution of this Church, entitles him? (BCO 24-5)

Reviews: Everybody Loses if This 'Love Wins'

Is Hell real? 
Does it matter?
Eternal souls are at stake. 


The teasers for Rob Bell's 'Love Wins' book coming out in April set the Christian social media world on fire. It was first  based on speculation as to what the book PROBABLY said.


Well now reviewers have copies of the book. Two solid reviews by people who actually read the book are available and I recommend them.


If you don't know what 'universalism' (the false teaching that eventually everyone will be saved) looks like in the modern world, Bell's teaching in this book is one (probably popular) example. 


The reviews are good and solid. I don't think either reviewer is trying to be mean. Neither takes personal stabs at Bell. However, they take issue with his theology and his misinterpretation of the Scripture and history.


So, the book has many serious faults. Stand firm in your faith. Know the issues. Be kind in your replies and comments. 


The long review is by Pastor Kevin DeYoung. The shorter review is by Tim Challies. 

Zoolander School of Service Training - Trend #4

Serving others is great! And should be encouraged!! Yes! Finally a positive trend to discuss!


So Do Something. Do Good Stuff. Do Anything. 


Really? 


Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller character in the 2001 movie by the same name) takes a jab at the popular rush to Just Do Something. The life-changing realization of this 'ridiculously good-looking male model' causes him to start "The Derek Zoolander Center For Children Who Can't Read Good And Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff Good Too" where "we teach you that there's more to life than being really, really ridiculously good-looking."


So Ben/Zoolander puts in the dig and we keep rushing out to pose for the camera while we are doing something good.


Are we a society of poser servants?
While serving others may be better than a hoarding greedy 'Me-first' attitude, I wonder if the inspiration and motivation to serve is as awesome as we all think. 

• Could it be that people serve because it is popular?
• Could the appearance be more important that actually helping someone? 
• Could our posing for pictures be the motivation more than the one we serve?

I'm not sure. But Barna comments on the fourth mega-trend in current religion and Christianity:

Largely driven by the passion and energy of young adults, Christians are more open to and more involved in community service activities than has been true in the recent past. While we remain more self-indulgent than self-sacrificing, the expanded focus on justice and service has struck a chord with many. However, despite the increased emphasis, churches run the risk of watching congregants’ engagement wane unless they embrace a strong spiritual basis for such service. Simply doing good works because it's the socially esteemed choice of the moment will not produce much staying power.

To facilitate service as a long-term way of living and to provide people with the intrinsic joy of blessing others, churches have a window of opportunity to support such action with biblical perspective. And the more that churches and believers can be recognized as people doing good deeds out of genuine love and compassion, the more appealing the Christian life will be to those who are on the sidelines watching. Showing that community action as a viable alternative to government programs is another means of introducing the value of the Christian faith in society.

I'd be stupid to assume I know all that Barna thinks about this trend toward serving but it seems he thinks the church needs to jump on the bandwagon while it is trendy to serve. I have no problem with serving. We serve at Crosspoint/Encuentro. I am questioning our hearts behind the actions.


Serve as Jesus Served is Different
Jesus did not call His followers to serve and make a big deal about it. Scripture says if you bring attention to your service then you have your reward in full. So should be take lots of photos and promote our serving?


Jesus called His followers to self-sacrifice. Actually he said 'take up your cross and follow me' and he didn't mean take up your cross jewelry. He meant join me in humiliation, accomodation, crossing barriers of race, class and ability and join me in self-sacrificial, even death.


Is that what the rush to serve is all about? Or is Ben Stiller's Zoolander pointed social commentary.


(More) Biblical Service
We do not have it all figured out here. We don't. But we are aiming toward biblical service to the poor, seeking reconciliation and justice and making a practical difference.


The book that is leading our thinking is called When Helping Hurts: How to Allievate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor... And Yourself. This is a tremendous resource and introduction into the problems and solutions of our modern rush to serve the poor. Read it and get into the training.


The way it has impacted us is that we don't start with our need to do something. 


We start with God's view of the poor, then develop relationship with real God's-image-bearing people who may need our help, encourage them to make changes based on their assets (not our view of what they need), then stay in long-term relationship learning together. I hope we learn to actually belong to one another and love one another.


Other churches have been doing this much longer and are more experienced disciples. The New City Fellowship Churches in Chattanooga and St. Louis help us enormously.


So Broken Pastor, Are You Against Service?
NO! I'm against self-serving service for the sake of the rich. It does more damage than truly helping someone.


I'm in favor of thoughtful, Scripture-directed Kingdom-of-God-service where the gospel of the Kingdom is proclaimed and to set captives free and actually, practically help the widow, fatherless, alien and powerless - without hurting them in the process. I want us all to receive really good news, alleviate real suffering and offer developing relief so people, families and cities change.

Easy Mac Trend Toward Insta-Spirituality

Macaroni in minutes. Just add water. A vacuum-seal package. Insta-food is normal. Speed is king.


But it's not 'simple'. It's someone else's highly-polished complexity in a serving-sized container. Someone else's hard work you ingest.


Insta-spirituality is similar. Tastes good, fills up  but isn't good. Trends toward pre-packaged spirituality isn't spiritual growth at all. Barna describes the problem like this:

Growing numbers of people are less interested in spiritual principles and more desirous of learning pragmatic solutions for life. When asked what matters most, teenagers prioritize education, career development, friendships, and travel. Faith is significant to them, but it takes a back seat to life accomplishments and is not necessarily perceived to affect their ability to achieve their dreams.

Among adults the areas of growing importance are lifestyle comfort, success, and personal achievements. Those dimensions have risen at the expense of investment in both faith and family. The turbo-charged pace of society leaves people with little time for reflection.

The deeper thinking that occurs typically relates to economic concerns or relational pressures. Spiritual practices like contemplation, solitude, silence, and simplicity are rare. (It is ironic that more than four out of five adults claim to live a simple life.)

Practical to a fault, Americans consider survival in the present to be much more significant than eternal security and spiritual possibilities. Because we continue to separate our spirituality from other dimensions of life through compartmentalization, a relatively superficial approach to faith has become a central means of optimizing our life experience.

Not biblical faith. It's faith in something other than the God of the Bible. It's idolatry of pragmatism, trusting in one's ability to work the American system. It will lead you straight to spiritual illness and death as clearly as living on McDonalds will Super-size you. Judgment is built into the experience. 


If easy-made insta-spirituality is your faith in God, you are in deep trouble.


Counter the trend? With a Real Bad News/Good News Gospel. 
'Insta-spirituality says the foundational problem goes like this, "I need to overcome inconveniences and discomfort and God will help me."  


God says in the Scriptures the fundamental problem is much worse. God has a problem with you. It's your own personal sin. 


At Crosspoint/Encuentro we say this: you are a sinner just like everybody else. A sinner like a prostitute, pimp, alcoholic, corporate raider or murderer. Isn't that what Jesus meant when He said lust is adultery and calling somebody an 'idiot' is murder?


Sin is much worse than the sanitized versions we hear from I'm-trying-to-be-happy religious or spiritual people, right? And I am (the pastor) more sinful than I imagined too.


The Problem Needs to be Felt and Seen as Severe
The Law of God points out to us the depth and severity of our sin. That is a good thing in the long run.


Why? Because as we see the depth and severity of our own sin, we realize we need a stronger, bigger Savior.


Good News is Severely Good Gospel (Gospel means 'Good News')
Put personally, Jesus volunteered to become a man, lived the life I should have lived and allowed himself to be arrested, tried, convicted and crucified. And while He was dying, hanging on a cross as my substitute, God took all my severe sin - past, present and future - and put in on Him and punished Him in my place.


He died as my substitute and three days later was raised from the dead.


It took a severe price to redeem this severe sinner. It's the only real solution. It isn't cheap. It wasn't easy and it isn't instant. He's bigger than my convenience and my comfort.


And good news is offered to all who turn and trust what Jesus did for them.


How do we grow in the Gospel? Cosmic restoration.
Restoration means real effort, practical help, spiritual discipline and fighting emotionally challenging idolatry. Challenging presumptions about American life.


We aren't wasting our lives on nice. Or happy. Or comfort, retirement, successful careers. There's more.


- We worship. Weekly we put real effort into worship each Sunday. Our church will not take a Sunday off for convenience. Sunday's designated for worship. It's the way He designed us.
- We serve. Our Redeemer was extremely practical. He asks us to do practical, inconvenient, hard actions on His behalf. We practically help folks who aren't like us, welcome people of other races, cultures, legal status, ability and class. We serve without alerting the media.
All people are made in the image of God. So dignity is big. Help without hurting. No matter how the world treats them, with us they are honored.
- We pray. Twice a year we devote ourselves to prayer. Our intercession team prays weekly. Families and individuals pray together in our vocations and as we go.
- We observe the disciplines of historic Christianity. We give, read/study God's Word, meditate, observe silence and cekebrate. We repent and forgive each other. We learn our gifts and serve accordingly.
- Our eyes on the nations. Our mission takes 'real' Christianity to Smyrna, Atlanta and all the nations. Crosspoint/Encuentro plays a role in a world-wide enterprise.


Note: We also interact with friends and family, culture, art, music, movies, parties and have fun. Pretty normal people who aren't settling for the American dream.


Different than nominal Christianity
By faith in Christ's redemption we stand forgiven, cleaned, guilt-free and adopted in His radical family. 


God is shaping us into ambassadors and freedom fighters for His kingdom here on earth as it is in Heaven.   


Our hope and prayer is that Americans can think further ahead than the present. This return to historic Christianity is far more robust, significant and vital than this small present American situation.


If you would like to talk about what you can do to encourage real, vital, winsome historic Christianity, leave a comment.