I was a shepherd in the traditional/conventional church. I also served as a deacon, a preacher, and a missionary. Today I believe more in the church of Bob Evans every Sunday afternoon, the church at Starbucks on Friday evenings and then there is my new institutional church at a University Hospital. (FYI—degrees in Nuclear Medicine and Bible; chose to make my living from the medical side)
For employees who have excessive absenteeism or a history of tardiness there is a policy that places them in a process with the end result being dismissal (verbal warning, written warning, etc) I choose not to do that. Instead I invite them into my office and use the wisdom that comes with sixty years of life and the spiritual wisdom God has blessed me with nudging them closer to success and Jesus (this is my policy and the process I choose). I really believe if I died tomorrow the employees of this institution would carry signs to my funeral expressing their love for me.
And then there are the folks at New Wineskins who encourage me in my wacky writings and the conversations I have with the many I talk with in Christian circles.
I am blessed!
Files under Church, Culture, How to Live, Jesus, conventional church, conversation, future church, influence, love, missional, orbiting the church, revolution, unchurched |
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Over at Jesus Manifesto.com Michael Cline writes an article every voter should read. Although not the main point of the article Mr. Cline makes an astute observation, of which the reader can easily overlook if not careful–Western Christianity’s one hundred year failure; cultural-driven exchanged for cultural relevance.
Rather than express Christian revelation in a way that is specific and adequate to the social realities in which we live, as Jacques Ellul writes, the Church too often “looks for ways to adapt Christianity to the dominant intellectual and sociological trend.” As a result, we guarantee ourselves a “small place in the new social order.”
Read the article The New Christians Kool-Aid
Files under Barack Obama, Culture, attractional church, future church |
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The older I get, the more I observe, the more I realize churches are adrift, not unlike the Titanic, heading blindly for the iceberg of the digital worldview.
Instead of thinking deeply about the changes necessary for navigating the churning waves of change, churches are busily engaged in treating the symptoms of low commitment–cutting edge sound systems, oversized monitors, studio stages, without dealing with the deeper realities of a changing cultural terrain.
The near future will soon confront church leaders with the challenge of measuring their willingness to unlearn, dismantle, and relearn. A tremendously difficult option for those locked into the prison of their own worldview.
Files under Church, Consumerism, attractional church, future church, low committment, shallow faith |
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