What is the Emerging Church

A lot people seem to be asking this question, and I hear of a lot of people going to a lot of different sources to find the answer. I couldn't get the original link to the article to work, but here is a shorter version by the same author.


Hope this helps.

Family Meetings (Edited)

Edited previous post.
As I re-read, I found that it was possible to read that I was attacking some. The question below is the intent of my previous post, and is more direct and to the point.

Can you imagine having a family dinner, that fails to ever address any one individual directly? Or a dinner in which no names are ever used? It would be so odd to be sitting around a table, listening to others talk about each other, referencing actions and questions of others, without ever using personal pronouns.

If you've ever spent time with me in Aces, Crossroads, or Community, I imagine that you were fairly comfortable having someone personally addressed in service. How many times have we openly talked about Brian's weekend excursions or jail time? We pray for Jake before he goes to court, and I do whatever is necessary to avoid praying for, "the anonymous one who is undergoing struggles."

I'm curious as to what other's thoughts are regarding being personal in church. Does it make the experience more like a real family gathering or less? Does it strip away the religiosity or add to it?

You Mean Churches Are Actually Helping People?

Did you get a chance to read the article in the Star on the 9th regarding a church in Ventura County offering "sanctuary" to a illegal aliens, (sojourners)?
The article ended with fascinating and telling quote by a spokesperson for the Center for Immigartion Studies in Washington D.C.,

"I would question any church leader sanctioning this and ask him or her What is it about this view that is distinctive or morally superior to 80 percent of the American public that can and does distinguish between legal and illegal immigration?"

What further proof is needed to show that the church has been neutered by it's alliances with the state. Someone thinks that disagreeing with the majority of the American public is grounds for the church being wrong? Wow!

"What is it about this view...?" How about, "It's Biblical," (also here)?

Standard of Living

After Sundays sermon which focused in part on the importance of taking care of the orphans. I got to talk with a lot of people about the issues surrounding the decision to adopt. One thing that I kept sharing with others is that if our sole reason for not adopting, is to not upset ours, (or our biological children's) standard of living, then we have some reexamining of Scripture to do. Nowhere do we find the Bible reinforcing or supporting our desire to maintain a high standard of living. In fact, Jesus seems to preach the opposite, (the whole to find your life you must lose your life thing). After thinking about it for awhile, I came to the conclusion that this thinking isn't unique to adoption pros and cons, but is applicable to every day decisions. Are we going to make decisions because they further us and our kingdoms? Or are we going to make decisions that will impact God's?

Pro-Life

In community, (and outside our walls), some of us have been asking how much we can really talk about being pro-life, if we ourselves are unwilling to provide homes for the unwanted unborn.
I remember several months ago, Brian B. said that he thought that perhaps one shouldn't even speak out against abortions, unless they had adopted, (or were willing to). He was met with some pretty fierce reactions. I think that the topic came up because I asked what injustice most concerned those gathered with us, and abortion came up.

Today I saw a question quoted from the StillHaventFound blog site:


"America has nearly 115,000 orphaned kids in foster care waiting to be adopted. Some wonder how this is possible in a country with Christian families. Surely, there are 115,000 missional families in America, right? Missional families, for example, embrace the redemptive mission of God and practice “true religion” in their local communities (James 1:27). Missional Christians in America could eliminate the foster care system tomorrow if we would stop “shootin’ up” with the American Dream (heroine) in order to get high on a lame life lived for the sake of comfort and ease."


Many critics of conservative ministries like Dobson's, Focus on the Family, criticize them primarily because the causes that they rally against have no impact on supporters lives. It costs me nothing to lobby against gay marriage, or for protection of fetuses.

What does it day about the way that we view "this world" and its comforts if we are unwilling to become uncomfortable.

So what are your thoughts? Are you rushing out to adopt the unwanted? Do we have an obligation as Jesus followers? Should our unwillingness to pull our families into adopting another impact our stance on abortion?

I personally have a lot of thinking to do, as I won't even adopt a dog unless it is a pure breed under 4 months old.

I do believe, I think

by Christine A. Hodge

During Community this morning, we watched a live simulcast of Pastor Paul Bergmann’s sermon (being preached in the main sanctuary). As I sat at a coffee table and listened to Pastor Paul’s teaching on Mark 9:14-32, my mind began to wander. But this time it was a good wandering. I was reminded of a blog post I read just days earlier from a mother who’s grown son is battling cancer (and I mean battling in every sense of the word). Her name is Ann, and her son is Aaron Boydston. Lately, Ann has been answering tough questions from a woman who wants real answers.

Here’s Ann’s answer to the question: When you are being strong for everybody, who can you be real with?

I have been surprised how many well-meaning Christians make it hard to be "real". There were times when I wanted to share the burden of my fears but felt "hushed" by their belief that thinking and speaking any negative thoughts would demonstrate a lack of faith and "mess up" Aaron’s healing. Thank God, I have learned it’s not the quality or quantity of my faith, but the object of my faith, Jesus, that matters. I am encouraged that Jesus said, "Your faith has made you well; go in peace" and not "Your perfect, immeasurable, unsinkable, flawless faith has made you well." I’m trusting in my Savior, not in how much faith I can conjure up. Having faith in my faith, feels like another form of "works."

One of the several people I have been able to be real with has been Aaron himself. His God is very Big, and not tripped up by the littleness of my faith. Aaron has never asked "Why me?" but trusted in his Father God, and is honored that God has used his illness to touch lives. A key verse for him has been: "For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ, but also the privilege of suffering for him." (Phil.1:29)

In Mark 9:14-32, a man whose son is possessed by an evil spirit, comes to Jesus with a request: "If you can do anything, take pity on us and help us." Jesus answers: "If you can? Everything is possible for him who believes." Immediately, the boy’s father exclaimed, "I do believe. Help me overcome my unbelief!"

That man was honest. He was real with Jesus. And that’s what God wants from us today. He doesn’t want us to say all the right words and do all the right things unless we are being real. God doesn’t expect us to have fake faith, as I call it. Or flawless faith, as Ann calls it. He wants us to have real faith. A faith that–even if we don’t like what’s going on and even if we’re not on the same page as God–we still trust that He is in control.

Pastor Paul said that "part of having true faith is trusting God’s will." He said, "That doesn’t mean that God will do whatever we want." And if we don’t get our own way, "that also doesn’t mean that God isn’t still in control."

Pastor Paul ended the morning by asking: "In what area of your life would you like to believe more? In what area would you like to trust God more?"

I think I’d like to just be more real with God, and more real with people, especially those who think I have it all together (Oh, if they only knew...) And I want to promote realness more among my friends and acquaintances. I want them to know that God doesn’t want us to get our act together before coming to Him. I want them to know that no matter what, as Pastor Paul put it, "God is a God who shows up"...every time!

Slacker

Wow! I'm a blogging slacker....