a winnowing moment

Where is the 'place' where we truly meet Jesus? Did it happen 'all at once' for you, or was it a cumulative thing which happened over time?

I realize salvation is an individual deal... and I know that relationship with the Savior is personal. But there is at least an element of 'group' to it, right? There is that 'Body' aspect to our walk... and I'm not necessarily talking about 'saved-ness' or 'un-saved-ness', I'm talking about memorable moments which mark our spiritual maturity along the way... certainly I can look back and remember 'markers' in my walk which helped shape me...

So, is it possible that entire congregations have certain watershed moments in their group history?

Looking back, I can think of several remarkable 'moments' in the story of the Riverside church. I have heard of some and I have been a part of others. It is very exciting to consider where God has brought us and where He is taking us...

At each of these 'signposts', I would imagine there were people who were made uncomfortable... some more so than others... and some to the point that they decided not to be a part of Riverside anymore... nobody wants to 'lose' anyone, but that sort of thing simply happens sometimes...

And it makes me wonder: what is the next watershed event? What is the next winnowing moment? As we continue to allow the Spirit to lead us, we will necessarily NOT keep the status quo. We will continue to stretch and grow and mature into that body which God wants us to be...

I think for each of us there is a very important question which must be answered if we truly want to act as His people (there are probably many more, but I am thinking of only one right now). Consequently, then, that same question will need to be answered by us as a body as well...

"Who is my Brother?"

Entire books have been written on the subject (some with that exact title)... and the further down God's path I (we) progress, the more important this question becomes.

For in the answer to that question lies the foundation for the ministry of the church. "Who are the unsaved?" is another way to ask it....

For my entire life, our fellowship has practically made a cottage industry of judging who was 'in' and who was 'out'... please don't misunderstand, I am not suggesting we return to that judgmental habit of deciding who the Christians are... especially when our criteria are based almost exclusively upon our man-made culture and tradition involving 'how we do church'... as a result, we have collectively decided that the enemy was the Baptists and the Methodists and the Lutherans and the other 'denominations' in our communities... (you know, all the ones who didn't 'do church' right...)

Trying to discern "who is my brother?" is not a bad thing. As a matter of fact, I would submit that it can be healthy and productive to try and discover who are His and who are not, because the answer to that one question will shape our ministry! ...we just need to use the right measuring device...

We like to believe that our little congregation is open and accepting and non-judgmental... and it is! I have never been a part of a local body which was more so... and it is incredibly liberating!

But sometimes my language reveals me... when I use phrases like 'member of the church' when describing someone (those of you who grew up in the churches of Christ know exactly what I mean... 'member of the church' is code for "this-person-is-a-member-in-good-standing-at-a-church-building-with-'churchofchrist'-over-the-door-and-where-they-act-and-worship-exactly-like-I-do")... when I think in that way, and when I still wonder about 'qualifications' and 'saved-ness' based on that tired, unBiblical criteria, my true self is revealed...

So, I believe there is a future time in our congregational history which will indeed be a winnowing point... a watershed moment. And it will be when we decide to have a very open and honest discussion about who it is we consider our brothers.

I have, for a long time, believed that Jude's exhortation to 'contend earnestly for the faith' was not license to rip and tear at the Baptists and Methodists! The passage speaks of 'godless men'... I have lots of Baptist friends, and I would not describe any of them as godless...

The point is this: When we decide to truly define who our brother is, it will open our eyes to possibilities to which we have been blinded before... and it will be a true winnowing moment.

Blessings!

...what if?

OK, this is a thought which has been percolating in my feeble brain for several years... and I introduced the idea to my teenage class Sunday morning.

I will pose it here as I posed it to my teens on Sunday... as a question:

What if God still works in our lives today the same way He did in Bible times?

Haven't most religious organizations held that God works differently today than He did then? I know my religious upbringing made a very clear distinction between 'then-God' and 'now-God'...
So, that question begs another: have we been correct in making that distinction? If God is indeed the same 'yesterday, today and tomorrow', if He is the Unchanging One, why would man decide there is something different now about the God of the Universe?

Is it possible that our God still 'gets our attention' in the same ways He got the attention of Moses or of Abraham? Is it so hard to fathom that the God who allowed or caused His people to be borne away in shameful captivity by the Babylonians would cause a modern day plague or tragedy to get the attention of His people today?

In some ways it is simply inconvenient to believe that. It is way easier to believe in a God who, at some point in History, decided to become very hands-off; most of us need to believe in a God who 'gave the globe a whirl', then took a siesta for a couple millennia (or however long He chooses) before awakening again to send Jesus back to get His people.

I believe we have the complete revealed will of God in the inspired writings of the Bible... I also understand that the Bible is a very accurate historical document. I am confident in that belief. But what if....

...what if, today, God inspired another historical testament which would chronicle the past 2,000 years? What if we could see the last two millennia through the eyes of the Creator?

Is it possible that God's 'world view' of the events of the last 20 centuries would be different from that of man? Asked a different way, is it possible that the people who lived during 'Bible times' (by the way, they probably didn't refer to their era of history as 'Bible times'), did not see the destruction of Jerusalem through the same lens as our God's?

Could it be that people of Moses' time saw the slaughter of entire families (when several families - including children - were swallowed up by a hole in the earth for their sins) as a natural disaster... Is it possible that those people viewed the extinction of an entire generation (the one which God decided didn't deserve to see the promised land - thus the wandering) not as the hand of God, but poor leadership?

Is it possible that the people around the region of Sodom and Gomorrah saw that city's destruction as an inexplicable natural disaster? (Today, we would have to send out a team of scientists to the crater to try to get some logical explanation)

Is it possible (I'm just asking the question) that God may have a different view of certain historically significant events which have occurred since the last Biblical writings?

What about the wars (Revolutionary War, French/Indian war, Civil War, WWI, WWII, Vietnam, Korea, Iraq, etc - just to name a few which have involved the U.S.)? How about the constant middle eastern conflicts?

What about the events we refer to as natural disasters or (in a weird twist of irony) "acts of God"? How about Floods and Hurricanes and Tsunamis?

Or (now it starts to get REALLY politically incorrect!) what about the holocaust or AIDS or 911 or global warming (if that really exists)?

Is it folly to consider that these may be something other than terrible man-made tragedies or unbelievable natural disasters?

I'm just asking the question: could it be we have conveniently glossed over God's awesome power so we can sleep better at night?

I know this: it is worth considering that the God who breathed the stars into existence and knows me by my name has the power to do whatever He wills in order to shape and prune His people.

So, is it crazy to imagine that the same God who performed inexplicable acts 3,000 years ago may perform inexplicable acts today?

just asking...

Casting Crowns live!

Well, we traveled all afternoon and then back all night, but the Casting Crowns concert was worth it!

These guys seem to have such an intense desire to serve God through their music... My family was blessed with the opportunity to see Casting Crowns live last night at the Family Arena in St Charles (St Louis suburb), Missouri...

The venue was a bit screwy - they funneled all the traffic through 2 lines... so they could collect $5 from each car for parking!!! I was speechless (well, almost)...

But that inconvenience was quickly forgotten by the time we settled into our seats and listened to opening act Leeland... they were terrific!

Then the Crowns took the stage and delivered their powerful, heartfelt brand of ministry. And it was incredible! Their harmonies were spot on and they played their hearts out for over 2 hours! I commend this experience to anyone! It was, quite simply, the most meaningful music ministry I have ever been exposed to...

And I am very tired today... but very blessed!

God Bless!

blessed by the seasons

Well, this morning is cold and rainy... ain't it wonderful?!!!??

I am so blessed to live in a part of our country which enjoys all 4 seasons... and I love every one! ...and I'm always ready for the next one... it would seem that fall is here (although my lawn looks as if it may need one more trimming before we put the mower under the house for the winter). And the dampness and cold this morning remind me that winter is not far away.

And I am in awe... how God could spin this all into motion with a word... how He could lead me to a place where I am daily reminded of His unfathomable power. It's truly incredible!

And, as fond as I am of the seasons of the year, I have never been as aware of the seasons of life... so as I reach middle age (yep, it's confirmed... my middle daughter is studying life cycles in science, and has observed that her mom and I have reached the 'middle'!), I begin to really embrace life's seasons...

while it's hard to get my mind around, I am just starting to see how God leads us (me) through the various, natural stages of this vapor we call life. I guess having a daughter in college sort of cemented the thought in my mind... a 9 year old and a 15 year old at home...

the fact that I still think of us as 'young married' (a 'group' at our church which used to get together each week for fellowship and study) while everyone else thinks of me as... well... seasoned... speaks to my hesitation to embrace this 'seasons' mentality...

But embrace it I will.... and I am warming to the concept, I have to admit...

and I love it! God has blessed me in so many ways... I can't even count them...

yeah, it was a little harder getting out of bed this morning than it was a few years ago... but I am really blessed by the seasons...

yep, looks like fall is here....

Blessings!

P.S. - it is SOOOO Goood to have Lynn and Joy back for a few months from Panama!

how blessed are we?

Today is a great day! God has given us another gorgeous weekend - today is quite simply a picture-perfect prototypical fall day in the Ozarks... Riverside's Family Fun Fair was a terrific success yesterday! Our worship assembly today should be especially sweet; Lynn and Joy are home for a few months from Volcan, Panama (can't wait to see them!)... Caitlin is home from college for the weekend (which has been tooooo short!), and our own Don Truitt is bringing the lesson today...

I am thankful for all the wonderful people God has placed in my path... what an exciting time to be alive!

Blessings!

outflowing on the trading post

There is a very popular program which airs around the noon hour on our local radio station... it is called 'the trading post', and it is hosted by my friend and brother, Monte Manchester, a 30+year veteran of the airwaves...

The show is essentially AM radio's version of EBay, without the bidding... folks call in and tell Monte what they have to sell (then give him their phone number so listeners can call them and buy whatever it is they have to sell)... and others call in and tell Monte what they are looking for, and give their contact information so those who may have just what they need can call 'em up and sell it to them... "putting buyers and sellers together for 40 years" is the slogan...

Anyhow, my buddy and ministry partner Doyne - who is evidently an avid 'trading post' listener - was facilitating our Adult Bible class last night and began telling about a regular caller to the Trading Post...

"She calls almost every day! ....and everyday, it's the same story":

"I know these two fellas who need a ride to

Memphis to catch the bus..." or

"There's a family with two little boys who need

a couple twin beds right away..."

Almost every day, this gal would call and ask if someone had something for someone...

"Part of me", Doyne confessed, "was saying 'come on, lady, get a life!' there are people trying to buy and sell their junk on here..."

"then", Doyne reported, "I noticed something very odd about her daily requests... they were never for her! Her requests were always for someone else!"

And it hit me... what an awesome ministry! What an incredible example of Outflow! This lady must have an unbelievable sphere of influence... she calls in almost every day with a different request for a different person....

No telling how many people have been touched by this tireless, regular visitor to the trading post...

I don't know where this lady worships or what 'church' she calls home, but she is doing God's work!

Wow! ...now that's outflow!

What makes Riverside a wonderful congregation

I was reading Terry Rush's blog today, and he shared some ideas which he believes may help congregations be more vibrant and alive and attractive... as I read it, I thought it might be healthy to list just a few characteristics and ideas which we have 'tried' here at Riverside...

Let me start by saying I write none of this out of arrogance or a 'look-at-us' attitude... I just want to give glory to God and His Holy Spirit for their guidance and patience as we continue to live out our story as the Riverside church of Christ...

1. Congregational greeting time - the Riverside family is warm and accepting, so we have a greeting time right smack dab in the middle of 'worship'... quite possibly the most empowering, congregation-changing nuance at Riverside.
2. Family news - we don't apologize for the length of our family news (announcements)... they are 'sprinkled' throughout our assembly time. And I believe they are a part of our worship/fellowship experience.
3. Kingdom Kids children's worship - simply awesome! We dismiss the children (only for the sermon portion of the adult worship) to the fellowship hall for a Bible lesson on their level... it is not a babysitting service, and it is not play time... it is a very well-prepared time of praise and Bible study - on a kid's level
4. Small Groups - perhaps the most important reason for the growth we have been blessed with... and this season, our life groups took a slightly different direction. We are studying 'Outflow' in our Wednesday evening adult class (which serves, incidentally, as the foundation for our Sunday night life group discussion), and have asked each life group to adopt a mindset of serving others to bring them to Christ... each group has ongoing 'projects' which they sponsor and carry out.
5. Budgetary focus - we resolved, 6 years ago, that at least 25% of EVERY dollar which is contributed to the Riverside 'coffers' will be used for benevolence and missions. period. And our 'cup' has overflowed ever since!
6. oh, yeah, we don't have any full time staff... as we near the 300-on-Sunday-morning mark, that is more and more challenging... and we are continually exploring the possibilities...

These are but a few, and none of them seem earth-shattering to me... but as I travel and worship with other congregations, I am reminded of some of these things... so I wanted to share them... please feel free to list your ideas as you see fit...

Blessings!

the least of these...

Perhaps one of the most sobering passages in scripture is found toward the end of Matthew's gospel... along about verse 40 of chapter 25, the inspired author describes the judgement scene.

"the King shall sit on His throne..." is the imagery the former tax collector uses to set the stage...

King Jesus is separating the righteous from the wicked... He begins by praising the righteous for their treatment of Him (Jesus) in various dire circumstances... hungry, thirsty, lonely, naked, sick and imprisoned. The righteous seem to be taken aback by His praise for them...

"when did we see you in these circumstances, and serve you?" (translation mine)

His answer seems to puzzle them even more.

"When you helped the least of these brothers of mine, you helped me"

Wow!

This story should make all who claim to be followers of Christ stand up and take notice! We had better be aware of 'the least of these', hadn't we? For most of my life, 'dealing' with 'those' people was left to the benevolence committee... I didn't have to actually 'come in contact' with them... that was the benevolence deacon's job... I just put my $3.80 in the collection plate, and my 'christian duty' was fulfilled!

I repent of that... I confess that I was NOT following the clear teaching of Matthew 25... I was sort of helping by proxy, and that's not at all what God is teaching us in this passage.

So, it is probably important to determine who these 'least' folks are, right?

I am more and more convicted that I don't have to look very far at all to see one of the King's brothers (His description, not mine) who is in need of my help.

• It's the single mom with a baby on her hip and one in the cart spending her very last $20 on formula and diapers.
• It's the child in the sweat shop in Bangladesh working for pennies a week so you and I can wear the latest brand name sneakers
• It's the patient at the Christian Clinic needing a prescription and a kind word
• It's the retired school teacher living in a homeless shelter whose husband left her with nothing but mountains of medical bills after his 11 year battle with Parkinson's disease
• It's the daddy trapped in a nowhere job contemplating having an affair with an office employee
• It's the elementary school student at the El Valle school in Volcan, Panama, who walks 4 hours to get to school by 8:30 without anything to even snack on

It's personal. Or it should be... we must put a face to the words of Matthew 25, because if we don't, we become desensitized...

We must shrink the degrees of separation that allow us the luxury of complacency... because that stagnating stance will lull us into believing (as many have for decades) that as long as we 'do Sunday mornings right', we will be saved on that last day.... and where we got that idea, I will never know.

Because of all the things the King could have praised the righteous for in Matthew's scene, we should take note of what He chose to praise them for doing: helping those who need help.

It astounds me how far I have gotten away from that very simple Christ-like-ness...

May we all look for "the least of the King's brothers" and help them!

Blessings!

Silver Dollar City's Festival of American Music

Well, it was another great week at Silver Dollar City! The weather was spectacular and the crowds were wonderful... thanks to all of you who share in our First Day ministry, and to all who came by the Gazebo to catch a set... or two!

And thank you for the overwhelming response to our new CD! Jeff Kreh did an astounding job of producing the CD, and an even better job of mixing our live sound all week... and, yes, he filled in some harmony parts from his post in the sound booth... very, very talented indeed!

Saturday was church of Christ weekend, and we got to see our old friends from Vocal Union, as they sang a couple sets in the Riverfront Playhouse... man, those guys are really very good! And just wonderful Christian people...

I hope everyone had as good a time as we did... thanks to the fine people at Silver Dollar City for making our stay enjoyable... and a special thank you to the folks at Kings Quarters for making us so welcome...

God Bless!

Handling Conflict - Part 3: Biblical Silence...

(note: this post is partially in response to a very well-considered comment left by Johnny C last Friday... so you may want to read his comment so this post makes better sense)

Let me say, first of all, that EVERY disagreement I have ever heard of in the churches of Christ - some very passionate - deal with 'how we do what we do' during a 2-hour period on Sunday morning. While it is important to discuss such matters, I am quite confident it is not worth the time we have spent on it... just once, I would love to see the same passionate attitude displayed when we talk about really important matters, like how to serve and love our neighbor... ok, rant over!

I appreciate learning new information from a variety of sources, and I try to respect the different beliefs which are held by those with whom I may disagree... and I especially accord due respect to the many writings and beliefs of those who are smarter and more studied than me (which is a very long list!). Also, I believe it is instructive to learn how believers have understood and applied scripture throughout the ages…

At the end of the day, however, it does not matter what I believe or what Dave Miller believes or what we may find in the "Syriac Didascalia" or the "Apostolic Constitution", all of which are uninspired writings… what matters is what the Bible has to say… and sometimes the Bible says little or nothing… so it becomes a question of what you make of that Biblical Silence… is it permissive or prohibitive?

(I will say, however, that citing Dave Miller as an authoritative source on any subject will invariably produce a 'church-of-Christ-party-line' response. I have read a lot of material written by Dr Miller, and I have rarely read any material from any source which carries such a pronounced bias. While I respect him for his educational experience and deep study, I have a hard time giving any weight whatsoever to his 'findings' on any subject dealing with the defense of 'church of Christ doctrine'... he is simply too biased. Dr Dave Miller is the author of 'Piloting the Strait', a volume which, in my estimation, set the Christian movement back 100 years! Also, if we are to place any importance on the uninspired words of men, I would tend to give more weight to those who were only a few generations removed from Jesus’ day – such as the author(s) of the Syriac Didascalia - rather than any modern-day author who is separated from apostolic times by 20 centuries.)

The 'preponderance-of-the-evidence' argument (which supposes that we may glean the overall direction which the Bible leads from how often something is or isn't referred to or mentioned) leads to a very important discussion. It is the argument which many of us use to justify (I mean that in a good way) the way we do things during our corporate worship. When there is not clear guidance or specific command with regard to some issue, we try to glean the 'overall direction' from the Bible... we try to discern God's will (usually with regard - again - to the way we do what we do for 2 hours on Sunday) from the 'overall tenor' of the scripture. (An example might be that since we do not read about any musical instruments being used in 'worship assembly' in the New Testament, we may assume that we should imitate that to be 'scriptural'.) This method, incidentally, is a second cousin to the 'better safe than sorry' method of Biblical interpretation...

Frankly, I believe this method is often used by those who look for ‘Biblical Authority’ for all they do (again, usually in our corporate worship)… then, in the absence of finding that ‘Biblical Authority’, move to the ‘preponderance’ method to ‘proof out’ our Sunday morning worship habits, most of which enjoy no Biblical attention whatsoever…

The reason this is dangerous - in my opinion - is because of my belief that God purposefully did NOT give specific new testament commands with regard to ‘how we do what we do’ on Sunday mornings… According to Galatians 3:24, the old law was a tutor, trainer, schoolmaster (depending upon your translation) to ‘lead us to Christ’, so we could then be justified by faith…

While God has always expected us to worship from the heart, He used the old law to ‘tutor’ and ‘train’ His followers to do so… and, as a tutor, the old law has some very specific commands as to how worshippers were to worship. These specific O.T. commands existed for the purpose of ‘training followers to worship with their hearts’… The danger (in my view) arises when we try to project Old Testament worship theology (specific instruction for worship) upon New Testament Christian worship…. I believe the reason there is virtually NO specific New Testament command with regard to HOW we worship is because God knew just how 'pharisaical' we humans could become… so His N.T. command boils down to ‘worshipping in spirit and in truth’ (Jn 4).

I heard a preacher this weekend talk about why we (church of Christ members) worship the way we do… his argument was offensive to me primarily because he spoke from the stance that we (the churches of Christ) are ‘doing it right’ while everyone else is ‘doing it wrong’… when I got beyond his rhetoric, I found that his argument was flimsy because of his dependence upon “speaking where the Bible speaks and being silent where the Bible is silent… to do Bible things in Bible ways, etc”…

I have a great deal of respect for anyone who practices what they preach… I respect them even if I believe their premise is wrong-headed… but when someone (usually from our fellowship) starts down the ‘speak-where-be-silent-where’ road (claiming specific Biblical command for ALL we do), I want to ask them why the women’s heads are uncovered…. and why nobody is lifting holy hands during worship…. and why we are even meeting IN a building the church owns… where is the ‘specific Biblical authority’ for any of those? When pressed, these folks invariably hide behind the ‘expedience’ rhetoric… and I cannot respect that… it doesn’t meet the smell test in any way. And (if we wish to quote modern-day-non-inspired authors), Brian Cobb has written a very well-considered article on Biblical silence… He is no more inspired than any of us, but he is very well-studied. http://www.manhattanmessenger.org/sounds-of-silence.pdf

When I think of the distinctive marks of Christ’s church, I no longer think of its identifying characteristics the way I used to… I encourage us all to think of what Jesus said about how 'all men' can identify His church… fill in the blank:

“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you _____________.”

For decades, we have filled in the blank with “worship without a piano”, or “never miss a ‘church service’”, or (sadly, back in the middle of the last century) “have a separate church house for the black folks”… (yes, our tradition ended up being on the wrong side of the slavery and segregation issues)

What would happen if we simply tried to live up to Jesus' own description of the church He died to establish: “by this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another”?

Now, how does ANY of this apply to the woman’s role in the church? I’m not sure, frankly. I know we have few (if any) Biblical examples of women filling certain roles in 1st Century Christian worship assemblies… in fairness, however, we have very few (if any) Biblical examples of 1st Century Worship at all! Could it be we are assigning importance to something which was simply inherent to the culture of the day? (Women were very much 2nd class citizens in the 1st century culture)

If we are to completely discount the opinions or writings of uninspired men, we are left with only the Bible, which is, according to I Timothy 3:16: “sufficient for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness”…

However, what are we to do with Biblical Silence? I think we have to apply Paul's words from I Timothy to the ENTIRE Bible... including its divine silence! He calls the Bible sufficient... are we arrogant enough to presume we should fill in the blanks of that silence, then bind it as Holy Canon on our brothers and sisters? We had better be really, really careful...

May God continue to Bless us and send His Spirit to indwell us as we grow and learn.

How do we handle conflict? (part 2)

Traditions and our treatment of Biblical silence will sometimes be the subject of our congregational conflict...

And I admit that we will sometimes disagree on the very question of whether something is tradition or scripture... and that's ok, too.

Here's an example: the more I study, the more I come to the conclusion that our acapella singing in our worship assembly is a tradition. There are many of my brothers and sisters (most of them more studied than I) who strongly disagree (that is a very deep discussion perhaps for another blog).

My point is this -I LOVE our acapella tradition! I think it is a very very healthy tradition! My worship seems to be more meaningful and real to me when there are no instruments 'in the way'... and I would NEVER suggest that we abandon our acapella singing! And, if the congregation where I worship decides to use instruments during worship, I have a decision to make... BUT I refuse to try and defend my traditional position by replacing Biblical Silence with my own understanding (as we have for decades) just to make my point!

OK, here's a less controversial (to some) tradition: for my whole life, we have served the Lord's Supper from the front of the auditorium... for decades, men have marched in lockstep formation down the aisles to stand at attention on the stage while someone ceremonially passes the predesignated number of plates of unleavened bread to each man... (in some congregations, mommas will buy a new suit for their young sons - once they have been baptized - to wear for their first time to serve 'on the table')

I believe that is a tradition of man. I happen to think it places the focus of our communion service on the men serving instead of on the GodMan who died for us and rose on the third day. We now serve communion from the back of the auditorium... it's not a big deal, but it is not the traditional way of doing it...

At another recent assembly, the preacher asked if the elders would gather at the back of the auditorium to receive those who responded to the invitation at the end of the lesson (instead of our traditional habit of our shepherds standing at the front)... afterwards, one precious sister was overheard to say "I don't think that's right... doesn't the Bible say we're supposed to 'come forward' when we respond to the invitation song?" (a great example of blurring the line between tradition and Biblical truth)

My point is this... we must be careful in our treatment of tradition. If it is important enough to the group that a tradition remain in place, that's fine... as long as that tradition doesn't turn into traditionalism and hinder the mission of the church...

If a member believes some traditions are potentially harmful to our mission as a church, they should say so... and if the group decides to hang on that tradition anyway, that member will have some choices to make (see list in previous post)...

I implore us all to react well... may we resolve NOT to incite others to agree with us... let us resolve NOT to scream and cry until we get our way... let us all try our best to act with humility (a daily struggle for me) and either work through the issues or bear up and shut up and get over it.

Above all, may we open the Bible and study it anew (without trying to 'proof' our long-held beliefs) so that we can truly know God's will for our lives...

May God's Holy Spirit always guide us as we grow and react... properly.

Blessings!

How do we handle conflict? (part 1)

My daddy used to tell me "It's not only about how you act, but how you react"...

Another bumper sticker reads: "Character is not made in a crisis, only exhibited"...

OK, before I 'cliche' you to death, here's the point:

We can make our plan and check off our checklist items, and we do... I can decide to act right and behave properly and I can execute on that decision. But if you truly want to know what is at my core, watch me when something doesn't go my way.... observe how I react when something bad happens... THAT is my true center. THAT is my true heart.

Along that line, I also believe the true 'me' comes out when I face conflict... when I disagree with someone (or when someone disagrees with me), then you can see who I really am.

Yeah, I know, sometimes we say stuff or do stuff 'in the heat of the moment' which we regret and apologize for (I find myself in that place more often than not)... but, on balance, I think we are at our truest 'self' when we face turmoil.

...and sometimes it ain't pretty. But that's ok. God has been working on me my whole life, and He certainly isn't finished... so there's still hope!

Group Dynamics:
As a local congregation grows, there will necessarily be conflict. It's just simple math: the more people who claim 'membership' to any group, the higher the chances that those people will 'bump into' each other.

I believe I have some 'reaction' choices when that happens:

1. sulk or scream 'til I get my way
2. stir the pot 'til I incite others to agree with me
3. leave the group
4. act with humility - listen and work through the conflict
5. bear up and shut up - get over it

If I choose number 1 or 2, I am virtually guaranteeing a negative result for the group and for me. If I choose to leave (and sometimes this is the best solution, believe me), I have probably taken a higher road than the first two choices, but it may not be the very best solution...

If, however, I take a deep breath and react with humility or just decide to get over it, the group will likely grow in trust and maturity... and the group will probably learn from that result and be empowered to handle the next conflict with greater confidence and less anxiety.

When this 'group' is a body of believers in Jesus... when the members of this group claim to be Christians, adherents to the Bible, it gets really interesting. Because we are all a product of our upbringing, we tend to act like those before us acted. We tend to believe like our moms and dads believe... and that's perfectly fine... until we blur the line between what our moms and dads believed and what the Bible says....

I saw a survey once which asked the reader to check off which 'sayings' came from the Bible... it listed popular sayings like "cleanliness is next to Godliness", and "a penny saved is a penny earned", and "whatever your hands find to do, do it with all your might"... it is surprising how many 'sayings' I thought were Bible passages that weren't! (by the way, how did you do with that short list?)

So it is (sometimes) with our congregational conflicts... someone will say "well, what about _________ ?" (fill in your hot button issue here)

"I know it makes me uncomfortable or I feel like that is not right or I know my mom and dad would have a problem with it... so, ergo, it MUST be 'Biblically' wrong!"

I am all about tradition... I believe tradition is morally, ethically, Biblically NEUTRAL! Some are good for the group and some are destructive to the group... and some are neither... they.... just are!

I am also not interested in throwing our traditions in the trash can just to be different or to push the envelope.

As I have said before, I will discuss tradition as long as someone cares to engage me in the discussion, and as long as we can agree it is tradition... and I will happily talk about Biblical silence and its possible implications, but I refuse to be involved in either discussion when someone - either ignorantly or knowingly - elevates traditions of man (or their 'spin' on Biblical silence) to Biblical truth.

....continued....

Blessings!

Traditionalism is a crippling disease

I come from a very tradition-laden religious upbringing... and I am very proud of that heritage.

I will defend my traditional religious heritage with great fervor, as long as we remember what we are discussing/defending: tradition!

I never want to forget where I 'came from' with regard to the traditions which helped make me 'me'.

Having said all that, I have developed one simple rule for those types of discussions:

leave the Bible out of it!

(by the way, in my experience, when these types of discussions ensue, most folks have obliged... because the typical argument revolves around the "I feel..." or "I think" mentality, and NOT around what scripture says - or doesn't say...)

So, when someone engages me in a quibble over things like "what order do we do worship in?" or "is clapping in worship ok?", I close my Bible and am happy to discuss it 'til the cows come home' (what does that mean, anyhow?)... I just refuse any longer to try to twist scripture to 'proof' my tradition...

There is NOTHING wrong with tradition! What is wrong is when we (I) try to find scripture to support my tradition!

so... here's the rub: As we try to attract people to Jesus by showing them His love, an incredible thing happens... THEY COME!!!

And that's dangerous... because when we lift Jesus up and show His love, the people we 'attract' will look different than most 'church members' with whom we are familiar... the makeup of our churches will change. No longer will we be surrounded by a bunch of 'same-way-thinkers' who adhere to our long held customs and culture...

When we truly try to 'reach the unchurched', guess what happens? IT WORKS!!! We reach them... and, for some of us, we struggle with the question: "Now what? What do we do with 'em?"

Here's what we CANNOT do... We cannot attract them with Christ's love, then hang our yoke of tradition around their necks!

Traditions are fine... Traditionalism is cancer! It is a crippling disease, a tool of the devil...

May God be with us as we discern the difference between our tradition and the Bible!

Blessings!

Rick Bell

For those who knew Rick, you realize we lost a hero Saturday night. I don't know if his name is on any plaques or if his likeness has been preserved in bronze anywhere... I doubt it.

That is not the kind of hero he was. He was an everyday hero... a wonderful, flawed, happy, broken, contented, forgiven man who loved his family and loved his Savior.

For the past couple weeks, he has been slipping slowly from this world... His lovely wife Kim has kept us all up to date on his transition from this life to the next. I have checked his blog every few hours since I learned of its existence...

So, Sunday morning when I woke up and logged on, I saw Kim's post from 11:37 the night before... It read:

"At 10:45pm, Rick left us to be with the Lord...

It was quiet and so very peaceful for him.

That was an answer to prayer.

He was surrounded by his family as he left this world.
God is good."

...and I wept. Because I am a selfish person.

Rick and I were not best friends... but he and Kim were so lovingly transparent during this whole process, I think many of us felt a real kinship... and he taught me a really important lesson: we talk and preach so much about how to live... but we rarely talk about how to die...

After Rick was diagnosed with Glioblastoma Mulltiforme Grade IV brain cancer only a few months ago, this man of great courage made a prayerful decision NOT to take the normal treatments to try to hang on to this life... I know that's a very personal decision... but because he chose to enjoy the remaining days of his life as he prepared to go home, I have a better view of that journey... and I am moved beyond words that he and Kim opened up and shared that with me. I am forever in his debt for selflessly showing me how to die.

I am reminded of the song Bart Millard (Mercy Me) wrote after his daddy passed; these words really help me when I think about losing my mom to cancer 11 years ago this month. As I thought about the lyrics to the song "Homesick", my tears changed from sadness to incredible, inexplicable joy:

You're in a better place, I've heard a thousand times

And at least a thousand times I've rejoiced for you

But the reason why I'm broken, the reason why I cry

Is how long must I wait to be with you

I close my eyes and I see your face

If home's where my heart is then I'm out of place

Lord, won't you give me strength to make it through somehow

I've never been more homesick than now

Thank you, Rick and Kim. You are my heroes.

while we were yet sinners

Contemporary author Brendon Manning observed:

The greatest cause of atheism is Chrtisians

who acknowledge Jesus with their lips,

then walk out the door and deny Him with their lifestyle.

That is what an unbelieving world finds.... unbelievable.

To the degree that his observation is true (and I happen to think he's on target), that should send a chill down the spine of every believer. That view of Christianity is accurate, not because Christ's model of the church is flawed, but because we have not followed the model... we have replaced it with some perverted 'religianity' which does not faintly resemble the life of Jesus.

Tony Campolo said it like this:

If we were to set out to establish a religion

in polar opposition to the beattitudes Jesus taught,

it would look strikingly similar to the pop Christianity

that has taken over the airwaves of North America.

Ouch! So what makes these two statements resonate? How is it that so many really good, well-intentioned people have so thoroughly missed it?

For my part I have, for most of my life, observed a religion... practiced a doctrine... And - simply put - that's a far cry from imitating Christ.

I am so moved by the thought that I am saved by Christ's blood. I am so blessed to be a part of a local church which continues to try to model His love... we certainly don't have it figured out (will we ever completely figure it out?), but it is an exciting journey. Every day, my brothers and sisters inspire me with stories of God blessing them. Every day, my friends at Riverside share with me a new tale of 'Outflowing' to the people around them...

Just yesterday, a brother told me of standing impatiently in line to pay his light bill... the guy in front of him was taking FOREVER to make arrangements to pay his own... and not very successfully. Seems that this young man was struggling, and did not have the money to pay the 'shutoff notice' amount... as my friend listened in (read: eavesdropped) on the conversation between this guy and the clerk, God touched his heart... and his impatience melted away. The clerk told the young man he could have one more day to pay the $55.34 which was past due... but after tomorrow, the electricity in his apartment would be turned off.

The young man walked out the door and finally it was my friend's turn to take care of his own business. He sat down and told the clerk he would like to pay the young man's shutoff notice... after a few moments of silence, she agreed... and he paid the $55.34 (and his own bill).

As he left, my friend asked the clerk to tell the young man, if he asked, that someone had taken care of the bill in Jesus' name...

The next day the clerk called my friend to tell him the young man was very moved that someone would pay his bill without even knowing him...

As I listened to the story, my eyes filled with tears. Because that story sounds very much like the one about God becoming man and paying the ultimate 'bill'... I know I cannot compare a $55 debt with the enormous price which Christ paid for us... but the young man's response does remind me of a certain passage of scripture:

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

... and there it is. That's the reason we must not observe a religion... that's why we can't simply practice a doctrine...

When we understand the sacrifice, we have no choice but to show Jesus to the people we meet everyday.

Blessings!

Halifax. Nova Scotia is Beautiful!

Greetings from beautiful Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.... Been here on business for a couple days, and I'm heading home today!

It's been a busy week, and I haven't taken time to post in over a week... my apologies... things should settle down a little as I wrap up things here and head south to the ozarks.

This city on the peninsula is gorgeous, and the people are very friendly and accomodating. My appointment went well, and God has blessed me with some really good weather.

Looking out over the harbor this early morning, I can't wait to see my family...

God Bless!