Going Home

To the Mississippi Delta! To Greenville, MS that is. The South Main Church of Christ is hosting a homecoming this weekend (March 28-29) and I will be participating in it, God willing. I am looking forward to seeing family and old friends. This church has been so gracious to me over the years.

Things have been busy around here lately. Last week I had a colonoscopy as a part of my 50 yr check-up. Mercy. The prep work was worse than the procedure.  Getting old- in medical ways- is no fun.

Gateway continues to be a blessing to me. Almost daily I hear kind words from folks here. I just finished a two month sermon series on the Exodus and it was well received. Thanks church!

On the home front it is Terri’s busiest time of the year. Tax season for accountants is crazy. Taylor and Jordan are working toward their recitals in ballet (It should really be fun watching Jordan for the first time) and Taylor is about to start spring soccer.

For me- well I would rather be fishing. Seems like forever since I wet a hook. My grad class work is taking up some of my free time and now yard work beckons.

See you around the blog!

“Mercy Triumphs Over Judgment”

It just kind of crept up on me- this amazing statement of the apostle James. It jumped right out of the inspired page into my heart. Such is the nature of bold, dynamic, life-changing truth. Set in the context of demonstrating favoritism and of judging by mere appearance- here are his wonderful words:

 

“Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!” (2:12-13)

 

Apparently James’ contemporaries struggled with judging as much as we do today. They were trying to play God and, predictably, failing miserably. Yet this beat goes on as we bow to the “image is everything” culture. Got money, fame, looks or special giftedness? Here take these cushy seats up front. For all the rest of you unattractive, no-talent poor folks grab a piece of the floor in the back there. (See James 2:1-11)

 

No mercy- just judging. Are we guilty? Remember “mercy triumphs over judgment” Do we get it?

 

• Mercy offers more than judgment- Judging usually accompanies prejudice, bitterness, pride and hatred. Mercy is connected to grace, forgiving and hope. Judging usually delivers an unjust final verdict while mercy offers another chance and a fresh start. Which reflects heaven the best?
• Fair judgments lead to mercy- When it comes to judging we always need to make sure we “judge righteous judgment” (John 7:24) and this should be only after we know the facts and consider the situation. This is not a harsh, snap judgment. It is a concerned response full of mercy intended to heal, help and deliver hope.
• Mercy is what we need! – Where would any of us be without the tremendous mercy of God? Through mercy God gives us what we need- not what we deserve. It is all a part of the “law that gives freedom”. How selfish of us not to pass on this wonderful gift- and how shortsighted- for if we fail to pass it on we will fail to receive it.  

Take James at his word. Let him speak to your heart. Speak and act as one who appreciates mercy. It- and all who honor it- will triumph in the end.

One Vision

Answers abound aplenty to address our failing churches. While details vary all agree that a new vision is needed. Here is mine.  As a church we need to:

• Rediscover our identity. We need to become less institutionalized and more personal. The first church in Acts had few institutional trappings. They engaged people where they were. Too often today the church is seen as detached from people- operating from a institutional mindset of protectionism, fear and judgmentalism. To erase the erosion we have to remove such barriers and become relevant in individual lives again. Our identity should be wrapped up in Christ’s thinking- not institutional thinking.
• Remember our purpose. God did not call us to come to a building, sit in pews and expect our preferences to be pampered. Peter clearly defines why we were chosen- “that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). If the church is to grow our focus must turn outward. Our purpose as Christians is to serve- not be served.  
• Redefine our priorities. When Christians are indistinguishable from their culture, the message of Christ is compromised. This is one reason why churches are now failing. Our priorities are skewed. We seek many other things before the kingdom. God cannot bless that. We must return Christ to his throne in our hearts and churches.
• Rekindle our faith. From where I sit, I see a culture of fear in our churches. More often I hear discussions about why we can’t rather than how we can. Part of this- in my opinion- stems from our institutional thinking. We operate from a “protect it first” reactionary mentality instead of outreach thinking. Faith is the causality here. “By faith” is how God’s people have always accomplished his will. We must return to trusting him in order to grow again.
• Re-engage fellowship. A fractured, divided, strife-filled church undermines everything Christ stands for. Infighting and a refusal to engage even those within our own fellowship disqualifies our Christian claims to our already skeptical world. When we can demonstrate that the love of Christ and one another overrides our often petty differences, that the church is indeed a welcoming place for all sinners, and that we actually cherish being together- then maybe our Christian claims will be more authentic and others will be inclined to join us.

God, strengthen us for this challenge and grant us humility and wisdom as we search for ways to revitalize your church in our communities.

More Erosion

By now you may have heard about the latest survey tracking religious trends in America. (If not go here and read all about it. This is also a related story, but with a broader viewpoint.) It is just more bad news about the erosion of Christian values and faith in America. The survey reveals fewer of us claim to be religious and few churches are even holding their own against the decline.

For those of us in Churches of Christ we can follow the Christian Chronicle’s ongoing effort to address this decline in our fellowship.

For those of us who are have made our life’s work in ministry none of this is new. Recently I have noticed an increase in church bulletin articles addressing absenteeism- especially for Sunday night and Wednesday gatherings. I have also noticed several articles discouraging lateness. Seems when we do come- we come late.

Overall, it just dovetails into the survey data. Religion and church matter less to us. It is simply not the priority it once was.

As sad as this news should be to us, I still believe it also holds great opportunities.  The further our culture moves away from the values of Christ, the greater the impact these values can actually have.  Now is definitely not the time to give up, now is the time to stand up.

But since the landscape has so changed around us perhaps our greatest challenge in all of this is in learning just how to stand.

Any suggestions?

Back Up and Walking

It hit me like a ton of bricks- the flu that is. I was down and out for over a week and the Doc said I came too close to pneumonia. I even missed Sunday worship and preaching. This was tough stuff, but I am back up and walking (but not yet running).

Terri reminded me that this was the first time she could ever remember me missing a Sunday due to illness. I missed worship and I missed preaching. For non-preachers, this may be difficult to completely understand, but preaching is not my lively-hood- it is my life- not just the actual act of preaching, but all that is related to it. I cannot imagine any other life.

Occasionally someone well comment on how challenging being a local preacher must be and certainly there are those moments. But the blessings have far outweighed the challenges for me. The church- while imperfect- has supported and encouraged me through both thick and thin times and I praise God for her. My church family-everywhere- has been incredible. Preaching is more than a profession- it is who I am.

Soon I am going home- to Greenville, MS- that is. On the last weekend of this month the South Main Church of Christ is having a homecoming. I get the privilege of being the resource speaker and am greatly looking forward to it. Danny Holman continues to do an outstanding job preaching there and has brought fresh life to that beloved church.

Sorry for the lapse in posting. I’ll just blame the flu!