www.blog.therefugeonline.org

The following is a common tale in ecclesiastical imperialism (ok, church planting):

A young man (I said “man” on purpose, funny huh?), let’s call him Pastor #1, announces that God has called him to plant a church in ____________ (most commonly a white suburban or cool urban area) and thus he will need your prayers (money). Let’s say the church begins to growand becomes self sufficient. Pastor # 1 is an average speaker, average counselor, and average administrator, but the world rests on his shoulders because he is the one who was built the church. Everything is as it should be, until one day along comes an exceptional young man who becomes part of this growing community. Over time, he begins to sense a calling from God to step into more leadership in this community, maybe even to do some of what Pastor #1 is “called” to do. And, as it turns out, Pastor #2 is actually an above average speaker, above average counselor, and above average administrator. Oh my, what will happen? Since the inception of the church, Pastor #1 has said how much he loves the church and all the sacrifices he has made to make it happen. However, when the rubber meets the road, he is the one in charge.

It is really no mystery, Pastor #2 will have to go to live out his calling, after all, only one person can be the leader, right?…

Wouldn’t it be amazing to see something different in this world of church? Why is Pastor #1 the one to stay? Not because of God, but because he got to the neighborhood first! It is like the spiritual version of “called it” that my brother and I played.

I think about these things a lot because I hear stories all the time, I seem to continue to see churches replicate the same old systems of power and self-centeredness and dishonesty.

I have compiled a few other scenarios that I am still waiting to experience: (not that I really want these things, but I prefer the truth to always blaming God for our crappy decisions)

• i am anxious to hear a Christian artist (author, singer) to say “I have completed this last work, not so much because I was inspired by God, but I really need the money.
• “this is Pastor Cindy and her administrative assistant Joe”
• “we are entering a million dollar building campaign, I think Jesus would rather we give the money to starving people in Africa, but I am tired of my ass hurting and I want nicer seats.”
• “if you have struggled with the same besetting issue for more than 6 months, or have no money, please leave or at least quit asking us for help because we are tired of hearing from you.”
• “no you cannot sing a special at church, you are not very pretty.”

Perhaps my greatest disappointment with church is the fact we can feed our egos, soften our seats, and marginalize the poor simply by using God language, throwing in a little “for the sake of the Kingdom” language here and there. I would prefer we just be a bit more honest and admit, power, money & egos are huge motivators for decisions churches make. And let’s face it, in systems like these, the “least of these” will continue to be last.

roy soto of via del red camino, a network of communities in latin america, wrote these. we thought they were so appropriate for the refuge commmunity. may these kingdom principles be part of the fabric of our community.

1. blessed are those that share what they have, for they will be a community of life.

2. blessed are those that are able to enjoy the fruit of their labor, for they will be a community of honesty.

3. blessed are those that stand together for equality, for they will be a community of justice.

4. blessed are those that release their grip on their possessions, for they will be a community of freedom.

5. blessed are those that feel the pain of others as their own, for they will be a community of mercy.

6. blessed are those that teach their children kingdom values, for they will be a community of hope.

7. blessed are they that show love instead of the law, for they will be a community of grace

we’re working on a project collecting data from a wide range of people on their experiences with “church” called “if you only knew: an experiment in listening.” our task is to give others a taste of what some people are really “thinking, feeling, dreaming, and hoping for” as it pertains to the kingdom of God here on earth as it is in heaven. we’d love to have as many people participate as possible and provide input on their experience with church, christians, and their hope for a better way.

our survey is available in pdf format here

if you want to download it in microsoft word to fill it out that way, click here

either way, just get it back to us via email at therefuge@therefugeonline.org or send it by may 1st to:
the refuge
po box 6805 – broomfield CO 80020

read the first page so you get a better sense of where we are going, the 2nd page is a lot of data that we would like to gather so we have a sense where the responses are coming from, and the survey itself, feel free to fill out as little or as much as you feel comfortable.

all responses will be confidential (use whatever name you’ve always wish you had!) and if you feel uncomfortable emailing it for some reason, feel free to just send it in. we would love to have as random and diverse of feedback as possible (think of people you know would love to have the opportunity to speak into “the church” freely and safely). we appreciate you taking the time to be part of this project.

we will keep you posted as things develop into a finished project! we are not sure exactly what it will all look like but we know we want to combine it into an artistic, integrated piece available online that will help readers listen in on the hearts of as wide and diverse of an audience as possible. questions, feel free to email us.

we’re listening.

this is a repost from jenny herrick’s blog. so good. may we be people willing to give up things that limit Jesus.

PART ONE:

I think one of my resolutions this year will be fewer sacred cows. Having been around the Church block a few times, I’ve at times found, adopted, rejected, or ignored rallying cries and doctrinal dividing lines along the way. Years ago I was part of discussions (i.e. arguments) to do with eschatological events and I’ve been fairly certain about different positions on opposite sides of the spectrum at different times! I could back both sides up with scripture. That shows how crazy some of that stuff gets. This is really weird, but I once had my community of faith (during early college years) tell me they “couldn’t fellowship with me anymore” because I was asking questions about the Holy Spirit! They believed charismatic experience was “wrong.” I wasn’t pushed out of the group because I was selling drugs or living with my boyfriend, but for messing with their sacred cow of doctrinal purity according to them.

Another group said I had to be “spirit-filled.” Anything liturgical was surely a sign of spiritual deadness and just head knowledge. Only certain people were allowed to pray for other people. I heard one leader say she wouldn’t let so-and-so (who by the way loved Jesus) touch her in prayer (afraid she would get slimed), thereby labeling that person as suspect, messed up, demonized or whatever in front of all the hearers. I am not talking about spiritual warfare, which I think is very real, but what seems like unkind pettiness.

I’ve heard warnings to be ultra-careful about what words come out of the mouth. A negative declaration may come true. Okay, this is a little extreme, but I know someone who will not say she is catching a cold, only that she is “catching a healing.” Very important to her, but seems a little like fantasyland to me.

These are admittedly my own absurd examples and in no way reflect the wonderful, wise, loving people I have known in all camps. I am so thankful for what I have learned and experienced from many persuasions in my faith journey. I’ve had some excellent mentors, too. It’s easy to look back and in hind sight see absurdity in some cases, but how many sacred cows do I still hold to (and even feed) that I don’t recognize as such? How many times do I think of someone as being “in” or “out” related to my or my group’s sacred cow? Do I alter my behavior to please people (whom I want to impress) over Jesus?

This year I hope to become freer from bottom lines that will not hold up over time. In other words, I want to grow in a knowledge of truth that causes me to root deeper in Jesus and his way (the way of love.) That sounds simplistic, but it is not. It is a process of debunking sacred cows that interfere with that along the way as I become aware of them. And friends, I will need you to help me. Are you “in” or “out”?

PART TWO:

Have you noticed how some people are affected by our sacred cows (methods of evangelism, prosperity message, etc…) Consider a portion of I Take My Chances by Mary Chapin Carpenter from one of my all-time favorite albums: Come On, Come On

I take my chances, I don’t mind working without a net
I take my chances, I take my chances every chance I get

I sat alone in the dark one night, tuning in by remote
I found a preacher who spoke of the light but there was brimstone in his throat
He’d show me the way according to him in return for my personal check
I flipped my channel back to CNN and I lit another cigarette

I take my chances, forgiveness doesn’t come with a debt
I take my chances, I take my chances every chance I get

I’ve crossed lines of words and wire and both have cut me deep
I’ve been frozen out and I’ve been on fire and the tears are mine to weep
Now I can cry until I laugh and laugh until I cry
So cut the deck right in half, I’ll play from either side

 

In Richard Foster’s discussion of Formation Prayer (Prayer, Finding the Heart’s True Home pp.60,61), he describes the active pursuit of humility. After all formation has to do with conformity to Christlikeness, so could it be that there is an antidote to some of our sacred cows that has to do with humility? He says:

…in simple terms, humility means to live as close to the truth as possible; the truth about ourselves, the truth about others, the truth about the world in which we live…

It does not mean groveling or finding the worst possible things to say about ourselves. Humility is in fact, filled with power to bring forth life. The word itself comes from the Latin humus, which means fertile ground. “Humility,” writes Anthony Bloom, “is the situation of the earth.” In one sense humility is nothing more than staying close to the earth. The earth, Bloom reminds us, is always with us, always taken for granted, always walked on by everyone. It is the place where we dump our garbage. “It’s there”, continues Bloom, “silent and accepting everything and in a miracuous way making out of all the refuse new richness…transforming corruption itself into a power of life and a new possibility of creativeness, open to the sunshine, open to the rain, ready to receive any seed we sow and capable of bringing thirtyfold, sixtyfold, a hundredfold out of every seed.” Such is the power of humility.

I want to think more about this power of humility. It sounds like a power for freedom, a power for joy, a power that attracts and makes people curious about the life it enables.

this blog is part of a synchroblog (people blogging about the same topic at the same time). we heard about it from erin at decompressing faith. here are the details. check out the links below for others writing today & see what they have to say about the same topic. we chose to participate because this is a subject near and dear to our heart.. now we will be honest, we can be people who rant and rave about all the things that are wrong with the church. you all know we are good at that! but the truth is that ranting and raving doesn’t change anything. action does. we couple the refuge’s belief statement with brennan manning’s challenging words, “if you want to know what a person really believes, you need to watch what they do.” when it comes to matters of “church”, actions do speak louder than words. we believe it’s that simple. we believe right now, more than ever, the world is watching. wondering. what kind of people are Christians? how are they best expressing the life of Christ corporately?

what would Jesus do with the church? maybe he has given us a glimpse of what he thought the foundational values would be in his most famous sermon. just think how different “church” would be if we took these words seriously corporately not just individually. here’s our little interpretation of the beatitudes in matthew 5:3-10 for churches.

blessed are those who realize their need for God…
“need me the most.”
we think Jesus hopes that we’d be communities who actually recognized our spiritual poverty & need for him. we have observed in church a reliance not on God but on high-tech power points, slick programs, video clips, fog machines, lights, amazing singers, inspiring sermons, and starbucks coffee. we believe Jesus would unplug church and get back to what is really important—raw interactions with people, stories, questions, tangible life on life that required absolutely nothing more than people & hearts.

blessed are those who mourn…
“let people feel”
what if churches became places people could really feel, mourn, grieve, so that they could be comforted? many think that the church is the last place they can struggle because they’ve encountered people who have questioned their faith, given them trite answers, expected them to get over their pain quickly. the result is always shame and the one place we should be able to be free from shame becomes the greatest source of it. we believe Jesus wants the church to become communities that embrace pain. that allow for grief. that are safe for people to shake their fist at God (we think he can take it) but are surrounded by other people who keep comforting, offering hope, not giving up. this means we have to be willing to let go of our “fix-it” mentality, stay in for the long haul and understand real change takes time and might look different than we think.

blessed are the humble…
“put others first.”
Jesus said that those who are humble will inherit the earth, yet the “church” has tended to have an overconfidence, certainty, exclusivity that reeks of pride & arrogance. we believe Jesus is asking the church to consider some really hard things in this category: apologize for the wrongs we have committed, ways we have offended, hurt & beat up people who read the same verses & feel differently about them. bend our knee publicly. admit our mistakes. open our doors to the outcasts or better yet close our doors and use our money to “go out” instead of expecting everyone to “come in”. if we have a building, let other people use it a lot instead of keeping it locked up 6 days a week (yes, that means people from other denominations, beliefs & ideas). give up meeting for bible study and start actually living out the bible with someone in need that requires us to give up our time, money, pride.

blessed are those who hunger & thirst for justice…
“advocate for all of humanity”
the church has a bad reputation in the media for focusing on two issues—abortion & homosexuality. while this isn’t the place to get into that conversation, we must not ignore that every 16 seconds someone dies of starvation. little boys & girls are being sold into slavery right now. as you’re reading this, families are being drug from their homes and slaughtered. closer to home, that woman you just said hi to in the parking lot is getting beat up by her boyfriend, your co-worker can’t buy groceries for her babies because her power bill is so high. the hispanic or african american or middle eastern guy you know overhears the jokes that everyone at work is always telling. Jesus told us to hunger and thirst for justice & righteousness. maybe it is time to be suspicious of power that masquerades as morality. we have to expand our world, find out what’s happening in other places and make people aware of it so they can make their own decisions on how to respond. help people walk a mile in another man’s shoes. show single parents, the addicted & mentally ill, the outcasts that we give a rip about them. give as much money, airtime and encouragement as we can to local & global organizations that are dedicated to changing life tangibly & practically for those in need.

blessed are the merciful…
“be kind. it’s that simple.”
the church can be mean. ask a woman who’s had an abortion. someone who struggles with homosexuality. the single mom who asked for help with her rent. the person who believes in something different than Jesus and just wanted to have a conversation. the christian who starts to doubt. we believe Jesus is calling the church to be places of mercy. compassion. understanding. that we need to listen better. quit talking so much. hold the space. wow people with our ability to stay in & be present instead of ditch, dismiss, and move on to the next thing. build a reputation for kindness in small wonderful ways that starts to spread.

blessed are the pure in heart…
“freedom is better than slavery to approval & power.”
we believe that many churches are filled with leaders with great hearts who are sincerely trying to do what they think is best. we like to consider ourselves in this category! but we wonder if Jesus is challenging us all to notice how much of what we do is motivated by fear? how much approval are we trying to get? are we measuring success by stories of love and hope and transformation or by attendance, budgets, and adherence to the latest leadership book we just read? we think Jesus wants our hearts to be more pure, to be motivated by the right things, not our preservation or reputations. maybe he would challenge us to give away more than we think we can. to do anything we can to diffuse power. share leadership. ask ourselves hard questions about why we think we have to do certain things. don’t cater to the big givers, the power people, the ones we think are going to give extra bang for our buck. love people freely and help fan their gifts into flame instead of using them to get what we need.

blessed are the peacemakers…
“build bridges not walls.”
let’s face it, the church has a reputation for building walls against “the world”, those who don’t believe the same things we do. to be peacemakers we need to build bridges in our community, make friends with people & churches & organizations that are trying to advocate for the poor, the oppressed, the victimized even if we see God, the world differently. network with other faith communities instead of competing against them. teach and model peace, forgiveness, loving our enemies in tangible ways.

blessed are those who are persecuted…
“get ready for it to get harder.”
really living out the gospel means it is going to hurt. paychecks will be cut, women & those without a voice will get more air time. people will leave, demand that we “give them what they are used to getting.” leadership gurus will tell us we are stupid, that we’re not doing things we must do to build a successful church. hardliners will think we are not focusing enough on making sure everyone knows the truth. we might get in trouble with our denomination, our old friends in ministry, oh all kinds of people who won’t like us changing.

+ + +

here’s our bottom line. we don’t really want to do this either. we know this is the hard road and we are human beings guided by a sense of “let’s find the path of least resistence as quickly as we can.” but that was what Jesus was railing against. he told us from the beginning—this is going to be hard, harder than you ever imagined. but if we take his words seriously, then it’s time for the church to quit following the ways of the world—power, success, exclusivity, structures that have to be sustained, techniques-that-win-and-move-us-up-a-notch and start working on downward mobility—diffused, flexible, diverse, power-less, poured out, present, humble. we do not presume to hit this right. we are wrestling with all the same things other churches are wrestling with. but we guess what we’re saying is “Jesus, we’re listening and we’ll try to give it a shot.”

check out what these others have to say about what they think Jesus would do with the church:

erin word
glenn hager
gary means
alan knox
nate peres
sally coleman
barb
rick stillwell
jeff greathouse
dan
jonathan brink
barbara legere
jason ellis
rainier