Because that’s what brothers are for.

Every time I read an article by Mark Galli, I am deeply moved or provoked to deeper thought.  Once again, he has posted a thoughtful essay capturing what some of us are thinking now days

“One way to define spiritual life is getting so tired and fed up with yourself you go on to something better, which is following Jesus.”

“when there is a better way to make a suit, we’ll change.” 

brilliant marketing piece

A little French Gymkhana fun for Thursday

A new form of Poetry for the 21st Century?  Stunning video

Gordon McDonald is always worth reading.  He’s been down most roads we’ve been down and he writes with winsome skill.  He wrote an article on Anne Rice’s recent decision to walk away from Christianity.  She has much in common with many who love Jesus but not his wife…

here are a couple of great excerpts: 

describing a man who walked away from his faith:

“…his experience of conversion (and there is an experience) wore out by not being renewed or deepened. It was only a conversion with a twelve-year-old date on it.”

and

“As I struggled to understand what had happened, I came to the conclusion that there is an experiential sense in which commitment to Jesus remains vigorous only if one re-believes and renews his/her conversion every day. As Paul writes, “Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,” and as my friend the alcoholic says, ‘It’s one day at a time, baby.’ “

full article here

Eugene Cho wrote an excellent article about the condition of minister’s heart and souls in the west.  I found it to be very accurate, profound and moving and I’m trying to figure out how to reconcile it with the global conversation I referenced in my last blog over at CT

Ministry is one of the most demanding “jobs” in the west and according to his article, is ranked more dangerous than handling explosives by Life Insurance companies.  (Can this really be true?  Youzers.) 

I don’t know how to make sense of both articles, except to say that suffering is inherent in the call to serve God and we in the west, at least, are not prepared for it.  Our friends in the majority of the world know more about this than we ever will and I hope to learn more from them in the coming years about it. 

There’s a profound discussion about service and suffering going on over at: http://www.christianitytoday.com/globalconversation/august2010/index.html

The original article is long and meaty, as are the responses to it from various folks. It certainly makes me relook at serving in the west and the relative ease of it compared to serving in the rest of the world. 

Libby Little, a missionary in Afganistan wrote a response made all the more poignant by the recent news that her husband was murdered while serving on a medical trip.  She is talking about choosing to stay through war torn conflict while many other foreigners left for their own safety.  She offers no judgement on those who left, but here is what she writes about staying,

“During a brief lull in fighting, a military convoy was organized to take foreign advisers and government sympathizers to a safe place. We were offered a place in the convoy. Our neighbors, however, assured us the worst was over, so the convoy came and left without us. As the fighting worsened, and streets were abandoned, our neighbors fed us fresh bread and sweet milk. Some took turns guarding our gate, motioning angry mobs to “pass by” our home. When the fighting ended, they referred to us as “the people who stayed.”

and then later on, at Christmas, the fighting started again and bombs were exploding all around their home and neighbors gathered in her basement as she, stricken with fear simply whispered the name of Jesus over and over.  Later, as she reflected on that event, she writes,

“God blessed those occasions and visited us with his power. His amateur followers, stricken with stage fright, forgetting their lines, were acting out in miniature something of his own Grand Narrative—Immanuel, God with us—in the miserable mess. The scenes set the stage for the Holy Spirit to work in a mighty way.”

Reading stories like this make me realize I really have no idea what life is like for the rest of the world and as it relates to ministry, I don’t know suffering at all. 

Can I make a confession?

I suck at Altar Calls.  Suck at them, I tell you. 

I was trained in a system that believed strongly in the Altar call and the defining moment of when a person steps forward to give their life to Christ.  Heck, its how I gave my life to Christ…standing in the pew next to my friend Andrew…..Vernon Jordan glaring at me and him to get on down the aisle.  Are you in?  I’ll go if you go.  Heart pounding, dry mouth.  We went.  For me it took.  I can’t speak for Andrew. 

I’ve offered a form of Altar call dozens of times in my own preaching and pretty much no one responds.  Well, truth be told, no one responds in the traditional way.

What I’m finding, and what I’ve had to live with, is the much more organic response from people.  For one guy, it was an email with two words.  We were baptizing his wife that coming Sunday and we weren’t sure where he was at with the whole faith thing. 

He sent me an email with two words, “I’m in.” 

He’s in. I cried.  He’s now one of our strongest leaders and hungerers after Christ. 

Or the lady expressed an interested in getting baptized.  I called her.  She said, “I actually don’t want to get baptized but God wants me to.”

ah…what? 

“Yeah, if I get baptized, then God has all of me.  If I don’t, then I can hold back, and I always hold a piece of myself back from everyone, so I don’t want to get baptized.  But God is telling me to, so I will.” 

I couldn’t have summarized the struggle for long term discipleship any better than that.

Others simply stop me either at church or during the week.  Maybe its not baptism, or giving their life to Christ, but its still a response to a challenge in a message, “oh Steve, by the way.  You know that thing you talk about with money - giving and all that?  Yeah, we’re going to try that out.  Wanted you to know.”  

They just never respond during an altar call.  Come down the aisle, fill out this card, raise your hand. 

nada. 

But they sure do respond.  Organically.  Not casually, just not prepackaged.  but I love it, because the response seems to stick and that is what its all about. 

Here’s a quote from Mike Flieschmann who speaks to this organic response, “I’m far more flexible than I used to be about what constitutes a conversion event.  Today I’m far more interested in what authentic , ongoing faith looks like in a person’s life.  As someone who spends a lot of time helping irreligious people find faith, I can’t begin to explain some of their faith stories.  What I can’t deny, however, is their confession of faith, the fruit in their life, and their ongoing growth in Christ.” 

I’ve learned to be too, because God is working and His power is sticking and growing people just not typically through a prepackaged response mechanism.  Maybe it is for you and that’s truly great, but it isn’t with me and I couldn’t be more thrilled. 

I have great admiration for wordsmiths and in the hard work of words, Donald Miller is an absolute craftsman.  Here is a quick comment from him that stopped me in my tracks,

“It was an accidental meeting, but it was one of those accidents that explodes blessings into your life.”

If you want context, you can read his article here

A good writer engages your world as they describe theirs, so the phrase, “accidental meeting” and “explodes blessing” combined to trigger my own recollections of accidental and explosive blessings.  I’m sure you’ve had more than your fair share as well. 

Accidental explosive blessings - mostly in the form of people for me.  How about for you?

“When the status quo benefits you, your theology doesn’t normally include changing the status quo.”  — Jim Wallis