iGod

Is there such a thing as a "church planter personality type"?

There is an interesting post on the Vineyard USA site which looks at this question. As a church planter myself I often wonder what makes idiots like us go out and do such a crazy thing! It is a lot of hard work, self-sacrifice and heartache. How did we get into this place?

Of course, reflecting on such a question when you have just spent all your physical and emotional energy and grace levels over a busy period is not a particular good idea!

It is an immense privilege to see the birth a church and start to watch it grow. Much like the birth of a baby, it is both exciting and exhausting. Some days it is great to be a father. Other days you find yourself longing for a simple life again. Of course, no-one really wants to go back to how things are before, that was boring, but we do like to let off steam once in a while.

I am truly grateful to God for all those he brings to us as 'pioneers'. They, too, have made a sacrifice. Rather than go to the big church down the road they have made a cognitive decision to get 'hands-on' with us.

Is there a personality type for this type of calling or is it just a Spirit of God thing?  Hm!

In my own experience I believe, on the whole, it is the latter?  Of course, faith, a sense of fun and a willingness to do absolutely anything and everything are not bad attributes to behold. And the for pastor I would recommend some theological and pastoral training, but the big thing has got to be knowing you are called. If you do not know that you could be in some trouble.

In established churches it is possible to avoid this issue, but in small church plants (and here I am talking in the Vineyard's definition being a church of under 60 people) something deep needs to sustain you.

For me that has been the constant faithfulness of God's blessing on me and my family and the wonderful friendships I have made since staring this thing. I hope that can be said of others too.

Otherwise, when the going gets tough the tough sadly go missing! And that is tragic.

ASD

Why I have no faith in religion (article reproduced)

The following article appeared in June's edition of Community News, a great little magazine which goes out to our town and surrounding areas. As I am aware that a large number are out of the circulation area, here it is again...

As the pastor of Stour Valley Vineyard Church, I have a confession: I have no faith in religion. There, said it. However, I think faith is great and a lot of us are pretty good at it. You might be thinking, “isn’t that being semantic? Aren’t religion and faith the same?”

Nope!  But stick with me and I’ll try and explain.  Faith leads to hope, it helps us to live life. Faith overcomes fear. Faith is also the dividing line between us and other species.

And contrary to opinion, faith is not the property of the Church.  Everyone has faith of some sort. Faith the sun will rise; faith that if we drop an egg it will break because of Newton’s gravity; faith in other people’s advice. In short, faith is critical to life. Without it we would do nothing.

And then there is religious faith.

There is the religion of large corporations like IBM and Google and Apple. There is the religion of sport, the religion of music. Each one draws its own set of followers and requires it adheres to its set of spoken or unspoken rules.

This is why we humans invented religion: to give our faith a system to belong, grow and develop. Religion is a like a mantra that tells us that belief is okay, it will help to get us there.

I once played, by invitation, at a rather posh golf club. At one point during play my gamesmanship was called into question. Later as I left the clubhouse a member thrust a weighty rule book into my hand. I was embarrassed and humiliated to say the least. This is the problem with religion, when you don’t play by its rules it wants to correct you, whether you want it or not.  At this point you accept or reject it. I never played there again.

The problem is that religion is a hindrance for many of us; it doesn’t support our faith, merely props up the status quo.  At worse, it judges, divides and subdues us.

Now, even by me writing these things I suspect some might feel threatened. Not by the implied criticism of some long held rituals and methodology, but because it probably feels like criticism of personal faith.  Please don’t. That’s not my intention. Faith is a gift from God.

I love my own faith because of what it stands for.  I guess I wouldn’t be a pastor if I didn’t!  But I understand that not all people share my enthusiasm. This is maybe because for them being a Christian is another word for being ‘religious’ and therefore is a barrier. It would be for me.  Yet if we lose the institutional aspects of church life maybe we might find at its core something that is personal, practical and real. Something that Jesus, perhaps, meant it to be.

The truth is I don’t want people to love religion or become ‘church goers’.  Pretty sure God doesn’t either.  I simply want people to have the chance to know God personally through his son Jesus –without all the nonsense.

I am told that well over 50% of the population believe in God.  Along with other churches in our area we’d like to help turn that belief into a personal faith.  Faith that gives hope and healing.

Maybe at some stage Emma and I might see you at a service at the Town Hall, Sudbury (usually 2^nd & 4^th Sundays of the month). Whatever, you’ll be welcome to come just as you are.

We’re a normal bunch of informal, all embracing, non-critical, non-religious people.  And I promise not to put a ‘rule book’ in your hand as you leave.

Have a blessed weekend and Father's Day.

ASD

Are you a pioneer or settler?

I have been musing over something that the 18th century Scottish moral philosopher and economist Adam Smith said: to paraphrase, an established clergy is not willing to fight very hard to leave their church buildings and to go out to declare what it believes in.

It has been given as one of the reasons why we are seeing church attendance decline in this country, compared to the vibrant Christian faith that abounds elsewhere in the world.

Where Christianity has had competition it has been forced to reflect what it actually does believe and work out whether it is worth dying for. It makes a good reason why the Church of England may have a better future ultimately becoming disestablished.

Coming from the Church of England, I have seen how people like 'mild Anglicanism'.It keeps things pleasant and not too challenging. I have had conversations with people who have said to me, in so many words, ‘have a conscience by all means, but don’t put your convictions in my face please.’  And that is just fellow Christians!  

Of course, every denomination has its struggles, including my own tribe Vineyard, but it does need us to think movement, not establishment. Having said that, I recognise that 'established' is another word for rooted. And to be rooted is not such a bad thing, just along as we plant as well.

Or to use another analogy with a Western theme, we can identify that there are two types of Christian: the pioneer and the settler.

The pioneer loves to go out and do new things, they enjoy the frontier experience, the adventure, moving into uncharted territory. It’s what makes them feel alive and sharpens their faith in Jesus.

The settler, on the other hand, likes to arrive when things are established and when it feels safe enough to bring the family with them. They aren’t necessarily starters of new ministries, but they know how to manage them and are hugely important in bringing stability to church life. They can share the vision for a missional church just as much as the pioneer type.

Interestingly, I was talking to another pastor recently and we were discussing how church planters (pioneers) can often feel rootless. They have no compunction about moving around. Home is spiritual and relational, not necessarily geographical.  The only consideration for not moving more is probably the pressure of a spouse saying, ‘Hey, honey, think about the children!’

The truth is, whether we recognise ourselves as a pioneer or settler, we all have to get out and ‘fight the good fight with all of our might’.  We need to be outward-focused and allow ourselves to be continually challenged by the competition, whether it is secularism, atheism, Islam or plain and simple apathy.

However, importantly, we need to remember that our enemy is not a person, but a spiritual being.

God is love. Our weapon is not judgement, it is mercy. We are called to love all, be generous to all, but it does require us to leave our pews and come out fighting to do it.

ASD

 

"Gossip the Gospel"? What does that mean, exactly?

Now here is a mildly interested thing for a weekend, recently I asked someone how we might as a church be involved with a particular activity. The response was along the lines of 'come along and gossip the gospel.'  Gossip the gospel?  In other words, come and informally chat about Jesus to others without getting heavy.

It is a phrase I have heard before, but not given it much thought - until now. Of course, I appreciate its phonetic and alliterative qualities and does sound like it should all have us nodding our heads in a profound and knowing kind of way, but I felt slightly uncomfortable with it. Maybe because the gossip bit is a negative to many ears and is attempting to be turned into a virtue.

In my Bible gossip as a pastime appears to be deeply frowned upon, along with slander, malice and hate. As the Old Testament writer put it so well, "A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret" (Proverbs 11:13). It is, in other words, destructive.

On the other hand, the gospel in a law of court is a benchmarch for truth, honesty and reliability. Hence, when you hear people say 'its the gospel truth' they are saying they would swear an oath by it. So to 'gossip the gospel' sounds all plain wrongety, wrong, wrong to simple old me.

Being generous, and knowing the good intentions of this person, I know they were trying to take the formality of sharing or preaching the gospel out of its usual evangelical clothing and make it more doable for scaredy cats like us, which is admirable. However, it is a phrase I wouldn't use.

Now if someone said to me 'just come and hang out and talk to people as and when' I would have no hang-ups, but then I am more of the Franciscan school of thought that says we preach Christ with our lives and when that doesn't work we use words.

We have still so much to learn. Me particularly.

ASD

Social networking and the Church

As ever I have far too many books on the go and often fail reading them from cover to cover, but one book that I am finding hard to put down is a book that I had recommended by Management Today: Throwing Sheep into the Boardroom by Matthew Fraser and Soumitra Dutta (Wiley).

In a nutshell, it’s about how online social network media is changing the way we live life, work and, indeed, the world.  For instance, did social network sites like Bebo and Facebook really help fuel the tragic suicides in Bridgend, as suggested by the news media?

What I find interesting from a Christian perspective is the co-authors‘ reference to Christianity.

A lot of our identity, whether Christian or not, is drawn from the dominant value systems around us like School, Community, Government and the Church. For us in new church movements we might think we are free from institutional thinking, but I am afraid we are more affected than we think.

One of the main reasons given why the early church was a frustration for the Jewish authorities and Romans was because it had little regard for hierarchy, i.e. it thought horizontally, not vertically.  It was a network of impassioned and highly motivated believers, who learnt not to be bound by culture or nationality and were often well out of their comfort zone. But nothing would stop them from spreading the word – thankfully for us.

Later on through the centuries the Catholic Church looked to get organised and borrowed the Roman law system, and name, to become the Roman Catholic Church. Thus, with the eventual demise of Roman empire the Church ironically became one itself.

Centuries later, much is made about Philippe le Bel, the King of France being upset with egocentric papal-blessed Knights Templar because they were not an accountable institution, but a network and  answerable only to the pope. (It is probably best to keep quiet that they were the forefathers of investment banking in the present climate.) Their non-hierarchical style and influence was an irritation, so he set about rubbishing their reputation and eventually outlawed them, which conveniently in the process saw their property and assets seized and the Vatican moved to France where the king could put his own man in.

There is a desire even today among institutions to control non-hierarchical networks, such as online social network sites. For a lot of people it is messy, dangerous, unaccountable. In short, it is far too democratic –  as everybody now has a louder voice and is becoming increasingly fearless to use it. 

Is this the start of the breakdown of society?  Or does it give rise to new opportunities? An an optimist, I would like to think the latter. I think of those early Christians who were horizontal thinkers and how radical they were. Rather than trying to convert the authorities with a vertical approach they talked peer to peer.

The authors of the book say that one of the fruit of the Web 2.0 culture will be not how we treat people we know, but how we treat strangers.  Interesting, don't you think?

Lastly, it is no coincidence that online organisations now have people with job titles such as Chief Evangelists. Just goes to show there really is nothing new under the sun.

ASD

Keeping the Church simple

We often find ourselves saying, "Why has life got so complicated?" Not only that it seems busier than ever. One of the things that makes me cringe the most is when people come up to me and say, "I know you are busy but..."

Even the Archbishop of the Canterbury has spoken recently at a primate meeting about being less busy and spending more time in activity such as prayer.

Sometimes we can even find our busyness an addiction. We love it when we say, "I haven't got a free evening until..."  As if we by achieving the apex of busyness we have proved that we are important or life has become significant.

Conversely, we hate it when we are idle. It can also make us feel guilty.

Being busy, for me at least, is a way of not dealing with the main issues, which I know really I should be giving my thinking/reflective time to. It's a state of mind where we can hide.

I wonder if sub-consciously the Church has made itself busy to avoid doing the simple stuff like getting outside the church walls and doing non-churchy stuff.

I am reading a book that has been recommended to me called Simple Church by Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger. It appeals to me as a brand planner in my day job because I am forever telling my clients that they need to keep their message simple for maximum impact. However often my own advice makes me wince, because I know that the Church has no problem making its message incredibly complex. Thus, simple truths like "God loves you " become inaccessible. Well worth a read, if you can get a copy.

ASD

In the boat

Last weekend I spoke about leaving old ways behind and stepping out in faith. I spoke about how if we want to explore an ocean of possibilities for our lives we must first have the courage to leave sight of the shoreline.

Carrying on the imagery of boats, I was saw a series of cartoons from AsboJesus showing the church as a boat on the seas and thought how apt it is to think of the church like this. Stepping out is not necessarily an easy option and not without its risk. That's been my personal experience anyway.

ASD

Imperfect people used by God

An old friend of mine who pastors a Vineyard church on the South coast has as his slogan “a church where the imperfect are perfectly welcome”. As an advertising copywriter by background I can appreciate the wordplay here, but think it’s a great releasing statement to make about your own fellowship.

Maybe like you, I come across a fair number of people, refugees if you like, who have experienced church as being a place of huge disappointment, for good or ill-founded reasons perhaps, nevertheless the pain is very, very real.

My vanity says I hope people won’t say the same about us, but it got me thinking all the same.

I have a responsibility as a pastor to do my utmost for anyone inside or outside the church and be Jesus to them. However, sadly it is a strong probability that I will unwittingly let someone down, if not already. And that thought truly breaks my heart.

Browsing through another friend’s blog I came across this piece of prose below, which I have seen somewhere before years ago. It’s worth publishing again, if just to remind us that::

1. ...God can use us, even when we don't feel very useful...
2. ...It's all about God, not about us, when we’re tempted to get proud.

Moses stuttered.
David's armour didn't fit.
Hosea's wife was a prostitute.
Jacob was a liar.
David had an affair with a woman and murdered her husband.
Solomon was too rich.
Abraham was too old.
David was too young.
Timothy had ulcers and bad health
Peter was afraid of death.
Lazarus - well he was dead.
John was self-righteous.
Jesus was too poor.
Naomi was a widow.
John Mark - rejected by Paul
Paul was a murderer.
So was Moses.
Jonah ran from God.
Miriam was a gossip & bigot
Gideon and Thomas both doubted.
Jeremiah was depressed and suicidal.
Elijah was burned out.
Martha was a worrywart.
Samson had long hair.
Noah got drunk.
And did I mention that Moses had a short fuse and mad temper?
So did Peter, Paul and, well, & lots of folks...

ASD

Stour Valley Vineyard

The Stour Valley Vineyard website is now up and running, so if you fancy a look click here.

For those of you you haven't got a clue what I am talking about, my wife and I are church planters affiliated to Vineyard Churches UK, part of a worldwide movement originally started and led by John Wimber in Southern California, USA. We were commissioned in early September 2007 to do this thing.

We're based in south suffolk, in an idyllic market town called Sudbury. Yes, I know ministry is tough, my urban friends!

We have tried our best to avoid "Christianese" on the site and make it accessible for anyone who wants to know about Jesus. Anyway, if you've got time, check it out.

Meanwhile, I leave you with a quote from the Rick Warren, author of the best-selling book The Purpose-Driven Church (Zondervan): "People aren't looking for a friendly church, they are looking for friends."

Have a great weekend!

ASD

Emerging Churches

I had a terrible revelation last week.  I was walking pass one of our bookcases in the living room at home when a book called Emerging Churches by Eddie Gibbs and Ryan Bolger caught my eye.

The truth is I couldn’t remember if I had bought or been given it.  And if I had been given it, when?  I found this quite disturbing. All this is indicative of being too busy doing other stuff and neglecting my theological reading. I feel shame.

Needless to say, I have since plucked this book from the shelf and started reading it and I have to say it ain’t half bad.

You may or may not have come across the term ‘emerging churches’.  In short, these are churches that are responding to a postmodern culture with new expressions of what is to be ‘Church’. The Anglican Church has its own version in its “Fresh Expression” churches, inspired and encouraged after a report entitled Mission-Shaped Churches was pulled together by postmodern thinker, Bishop Graham Cray.

As you might expect from someone who has spent a large part of his life exploring church growth dynamics, Gibbs and his co-author have put together an interesting set of live material, which includes case studies from across the pond.

From the UK perspective, churches like Grace in Ealing, West London are referenced, as you might expect, along with the Late, Late Service in Glasgow led by the amiable Andy Thornton.

Whether you concur with all that is said in the current ‘postmodern vs church debate’ it is an important book to read nevertheless, as it present nine practices of what it is to be an emerging church and looks at their specific theological emphases.

For us who are in the Vineyard movement there is also much to challenge us.

We describe ourselves as conservative Evangelicals with a Pentecostal experience (cf. Rich Nathan, Empowered Evangelicals), which has arisen out of modernity and the baby boom culture.  But it is perceived by many emerging church thinkers that this time is coming to an end. (Hm! Still need fully convincing.)

However, I do agree that the place of visual metaphor is something we need to rediscover in talking to a Reality TV generation. There is a great line by President Bartlet in West Wing when he banters with his aide: “Do you want to know what Modern history is? It’s television”.

But I need to know how the church truly dialogues without defaulting to the monologue of modernity. Taken to its natural conclusion the traditional Sunday Service looks as dead as a Dodo!

I’ll give the last - startling - word to one Emerging church leader from the lovely city of Seattle:

“We have come to see that it is all about Jesus and not just a methodology.  It is not about mission. It is not about church, but it is about Jesus and his glory, his life. To know Jesus is not an event, a ritual, a creed, or a religion. It is a journey of trust and adventure.  We don’t believe in any religion anymore – including Christianity – but we do believe in following Jesus. We no longer need religion and its special buildings, dogmas, programmes and clergy or any other human inventions that displace genuine spirituality. Why do we need a name and address to be church?  We have just come out of religion and back to God” Jonathan Campbell (Seattle)

Emerging Church is available to buy in my TO READ section.

By the way, I now remember when and where I got my book.  It was a Birthday present.  Thanks, Fiona!

ASD