When Will You Begin?

Mick Turner

I recently finished reading Robin Meyer’s landmark book, Saving Jesus From the Church. I found this book to be both challenging and insightful, not to mention timely considering the continuing flow of statistics showing the numerical demise of the Christian faith. This steady decrease in both numbers and influence makes Meyer’s book all the more relevant to the times and culture the church now exists in.

 If you have been reading this blog for any length of time, you are well aware that I have long believed that our mission as followers of Jesus is to incarnate his proactive love within the parameters of the gifting God has bestowed upon us and within the context where we have been placed. Some months back I penned these words – words I still hold deeply:

“If we take Jesus’ words recorded in the 25^th Chapter of Matthew as true, then it should be obvious to even the most dense among us that the litmus test for defining a Christian is not belief in Christ, but in embodying Christ.”

Meyers discusses this critical time in the church’s history and the potential for something wonderful being birthed out of the pains of the current labor. Utilizing the imagery of Robert Frost, Meyers tells us that:

Those roads that “diverged in a yellow wood” so long ago looked equally fair, but now one is well worn. It is the road of the Fall and redemption, original sin, and the Savior. The other is the road of enlightenment, wisdom, creation-centered spirituality, and a nearly forgotten object of discipleship: transformation. This is the road less traveled. It seeks not to save our souls but to restore them.

In my earlier writings I have alluded to similar themes time and time again. I can also certainly relate to the description of one of those folks sitting in the pews looking for something vital and critical to my spiritual survival but never quite finding it. No matter where I searched, it never quite fit. I was like the proverbial square peg and whether the pew was in a liberal church or a conservative one, I found only round holes. I now suspect there are a lot more people out there like me – sincere spiritual seekers that feel drawn, at times almost against their will, toward the church. I have at last come to understand why this “drawing” (or fatal attraction!) has never let up. It was never supposed to let up. Like Jonah, I had a mission and I still do.

Each of us is called to be part of the healing process for the church. I am not being overly general here. If you are a Christian, then you have the tools and abilities to accomplish this. You have a part to play in helping to restore the Body of Christ to its rightful and needed place in our culture and furthermore, you have been equipped to carry out this divine calling. What is lacking in far too many is the dedication, discipline, and means to do it. Also, keep in mind that when you are true to you calling, things will fall into place.

Remaining on the current road is no longer an option, and this is true in both the fundamentalist/conservative arms of the church and the liberal arm as well. Meyers warns us:

If we do not stop traveling down the road we are on, we will not just destroy the planet and everyone on it but continue to betray the heart of Christianity. Our task now is not just to demythologize Jesus. It is to let the breath of the Galilean sage fall on the neck of the church again. First we have to listen not to formulas of salvation but to a gospel that is all but forgotten. After centuries of being told that “Jesus saves,” the time has come to save Jesus from the church.

If the door is locked, we will break in through the windows. If anyone forbids us to approach the table, we will overturn it and serve communion on the floor. If any priest tells us we cannot sing this new son, we will sing it louder, invite others to sing it with us, and raise our voices in unison across all the boundaries of human contrivance – until this joyful chorus is heard in every corner of the world, and the church itself is raised from the dead.

For me personally, these words issued by Meyers serve as a clarion call to get up, gird up, and get busy going about the work I have been called to do. In my mind and in my heart, there is no doubt about that calling. The question now is not, “What am I to do?” The question, instead, is, “When do I begin?”

© L.D. Turner 2010/ All Rights Reserved

 

Are You A Living Letter?

L.D. Turner

Paul stressed that in order to be effective witnesses for the gospel, we must become “living epistles.” We must become open letters that anyone can read and by reading, come to a deeper understanding of just who this radical Galilean was and is. It is a high calling, indeed and not one to be taken lightly. If we take Jesus’ words recorded in the 26^th Chapter of Matthew as true, then it should be obvious to even the most dense among us that the litmus test for defining a Christian is not belief in Christ, but in embodying Christ.

My experience has been that many sincere adherents of the Christian faith pay little attention to the magnitude and the importance of this calling to emulate Christ in thought, word, and deed. I don’t say this to judge, but only to record what I think is an accurate observation. I would also add that I, too, am guilty of taking this call too lightly.

I have, however, managed to take the Christ-calling a bit more seriously over the past few years. For this I am ever grateful and, at the same time, quite aware that I still have a long, long way to go in terms of character formation. Yet I press forward toward that goal, which as Michael Frost points out, is incumbent upon all who would claim Jesus as Master and Teacher:

Practicing the presence of Christ means being a living example of the life of Jesus. This raises the stakes enormously. It means that our lives need to become increasingly aligned with the example of Jesus. It doesn’t require sinless obedience – as if that’s possible anyway. It means, though, increasingly becoming people of justice, kindness, mercy, strength, hope, grace, generosity, and hospitality.

Yes, this divine calling is an invitation to a life of fulfillment and reward beyond our imagining, if we will only yield ourselves to it with complete abandon. Yet for many of us, the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. Still, it is necessary to move forward as best we can, relying on the promises of God and the empowerment of the indwelling Holy Spirit. For many of us, we get better in spite of ourselves. I know that is often true in my case.

This call to emulate Christ is a call to give flesh to grace. The whole story-line of God’s Great Saga is one of proactive grace. God saw that we needed grace and gave us Christ and Christ saw that the world needed grace and gave the world us. Just pause and chew on that one for a minute. What a great honor and what a great responsibility.

The world in which Jesus carried out his grace-mission is far different than the one we live in. In some ways the world of the first century was far more difficult than our era, but in other ways, we face challenges Jesus never had to contend with. Still, if we take seriously the divine calling we have been speaking of we can’t let these challenges divert us from the task at hand. Michael Frost speaks clearly to the dilemma facing the contemporary church:

In our world today – post-Christendom and postmodern – we find ourselves a far cry from the simpler times during which Jesus lived…..we find ourselves up against challenges that we can’t imagine Jesus having to deal with. We stare vacantly at our WWJD (What would Jesus do?) wristbands, wondering just what Jesus would do when confronted with the befuddling complexities of contemporary culture. No wonder so many Christians opt to withdraw, to burrow deeper down inside their warrens in the hope that they can avoid contamination from the onslaught of the post-Christendom West. Likewise, the temptation to give in and be swept along by the prevailing mores is perfectly understandable. Swimming always against the constantly shifting flow of culture is exhausting, and it’s not incomprehensible when Christians throw their hands up and just stop swimming.

The pressing questions confronting those who are consecrated to the mission of vivifying the Body of Christ and mobilizing its resources in service of a world in great need revolve around both form and function. What kind of organization can best carry out the task of giving flesh to grace in highly varied circumstances? Once the shape is defined, how can the church best meet the needs of the community in which it finds itself?

As I have mentioned in other venues, my vision of the future church is of a body of highly committed Christians operating in groups that are creative, transformational, and incarnational. Michael Frost, writing with great promise and hope, cites six values that need to be embraced by the church of the future:

1. To seek an approach to spiritual growth that values inward transformation over external appearances.
2. To value a spirituality that seeks not to limit our God-given humanity, creativity, or individuality; to value diversity and difference over conformity and uniformity.
3. To enjoy from-the-heart, honest, dialogues and avoid relationships marked by superficiality and hidden agendas.
4. To strive to be completely honest with God and appropriately transparent with others about our inmost thoughts, hopes, dreams, emotions, shortcomings, failings, transgressions, struggles.
5. To seek to welcome back mystery and paradox over easy explanations; to live with questions that have no easy answers.
6. To work to honestly recalibrate our lifestyles, diets, spending patterns, and commitments to reflect our hope for a more just, equitable, and merciful society.

At first blush, these goals may seem overly idealistic and virtually impossible to bring into positive manifestation. As I study, reflect, and pray over these optimistic visions for the church, however, I find that they are not only highly pragmatic, but equally achievable if we consecrate ourselves to the task. We must also add to the equation a factor that many of us who hold a more liberal, progressive view of the faith seem to have either forgotten or cast into the dustbin of disbelief: With God, all things are possible.

Our work here at LifeBrook has demonstrated the reality that positive change is, indeed, possible. We have found that using a small group approach works best in bringing about spiritual transformation. Frost relates that in his church the formation of a small group ministry called “Life Transformation Groups” has worked quite well.

As stated earlier, our calling is to emulate Christ and become living epistles for the faith we claim. Although we face challenges that are different and, at least in some ways, more difficult than those faced by Jesus, these are exciting times for the Body of Christ. Within the context of these challenges and changes, we have the opportunity to forge a great future for Christ’s church.

 © L.D. Turner 2010/ All Rights Reserved

 

United Methodist Church Aims At Relevance and Global Service (Part Three)

L. Dwight Turner

Of all the wondrous aspects of God’s proactive grace, one of the most fascinating is his ongoing invitation to humankind to participate in the unfolding of his Great Story. When we understand the full ramifications of this divine invitation, we respond by praying for wisdom and discernment, two necessary gifts that will enable to us see where and how God is working and how we might fit into this work of restoration in a participatory way. The Foundation Document continues:

We open our hearts to confess our sin, to receive God’s grace, to discern God’s call, and to feel strengthened by God’s sustaining Spirit….God invites us, with all our imperfections, to participate in this work. We open our hearts so that we can change. We open our hearts to feel God’s presence with us as we labor.

 It is through our compassionate service that we, in the words of Wesley, embody the “moral image of God.” Using the analogy of breathing, Wesley likened our participatory efforts in support of the unfolding of the divine plan of restoration to the process of inhalation and exhalation. Accordingly, the Foundation Document reminds us that we embody the moral image of God when we receive his grace and then reflect that grace back into the world. Wesley called this giving and receiving of grace as “spiritual respiration.”

By responding to the Spirit’s action in our heart and going forth to do the work that we have been called to do, we bring into play the third aspect of the solution to the world’s problems: open hands. Personally, I am deeply moved by this focus of the Foundation Document. It is precisely here, with open hands, that we accept our responsibility as children of the Living God. And what is that responsibility: we are to give flesh to grace.

By being the hands, the feet, and above all, the heart of Christ in our hurting world, we engage in not only compassionate service, but also, participate in the wisest, most effective form of evangelism in existence. By incarnating the moral image of God and the loving heart of the Master, we become, in essence, what Paul called “living epistles.”

In speaking of the responsibility we, as Christians, have to God and the world, the Foundation Document states cogently:

We open our hands to respond to the Spirit and do the work God calls us to do in the world…..We often live as though “being created in God’s image” gives us special privilege, but that is a grave mistake. Our status as human beings increases our responsibility, not our privilege. Being created in God’s image means that we are charged with caring for this world, not invited to abuse it. Doing justice, building peace, and mending the planet are ways that we take care of what we have been given. However, we are not caretakers for an absentee landlord; rather God’s renewing Spirit works through us and courses around us breathing new life into the planet and its people.

 Next, the document reminds us that Wesley saw this aspect of stewardship as a sacred trust, not to be taken lightly.

A steward is not at liberty to use what is lodged in his hands as he pleases, but as his master pleases…..The care of the earth is entrusted to us. We are the “channels of God’s blessings” to the other creatures and to the earth itself. (Works 2:440)

 Living as he did during the growth period of the Industrial Revolution and its concomitant rapid urbanization, Wesley had great foresight into the potential problems associated with socio-economic forces and, far ahead of his time, began formulating a biblical response. As Methodists, we can rightly take pride in this aspect of our Wesleyan heritage.

The Foundation Document also connects this Wesleyan concern with creation with having “open eyes to see God’s vision for the whole of creation.” Further, the document makes the essential point that a valid Christian worldview understands the Hebrew prophetic tradition that Jesus was so much a part of. Specifically, the Council of Bishops tells us that “this is an inclusive vision of well-being.” The document goes on to connect this vision of wholeness with the tradition of “Shalom,” which includes living in harmony with all aspects of creation.

As humankind now moves into the second decade of the new century, it is vital that we understand and apply the principles of God’s kingdom to all aspects of life. Whereas specific aspects of the fabric of our existence need to be singled out for attention from time to time, we cannot afford to lose a holistic perspective on the world. We are all interdependent, interconnected parts of one large whole and suffering in one aspect of creation means suffering in all aspects. I think this is why healing is an important topic for discussion, planning, and practical application at this time in our collective history.

The Foundation Document makes it clear that for Jesus, healing and preaching the establishment of the Kingdom of God were deeply interrelated. From his writings and his ministry, it is also apparent that John Wesley was cognizant of this vital relationship as well.

Healing and preaching the Kingdom of God were part of the same ministry for Jesus. This process of preparing for the Kingdom of God, of renewing creation, is akin to a healing process. God is healing the planet….John Wesley held firmly to this language of healing in his own preaching and teaching. Indeed, one of his favorite metaphors for God was “the Great Physician.” (Works 4:23) For Wesley, God is fundamentally concerned about well-being. Salvation is understood holistically, as complete holiness and happiness. When we expand that notion of salvation to the planet, we see that God’s work of renewing creation is comprehensive. In the hands of the Great Physician, every aspect of our world is being made whole or healthy. Poverty and disease, environmental degradation, and violence are signs of our ill-health. God is working toward the health of the whole body. If we are to fashion ourselves as instruments of God’s renewing work in the world, we too must direct our efforts toward healing our collective body.

 Granted, each of these issues may require individual attention. However, we cannot afford to lose sight of the interrelated dimension of these global maladies. The Foundation Document, with characteristic cogency, addresses these themes:

With open eyes, we see the relationships between poverty and disease, environmental degradation, and the proliferation of weapons and violence. Although this makes the problems seem even more difficult to surmount, treating them separately is less effective. To accurately diagnose our situation and craft a viable plan for health, we must see and respond to the ways in which the particular threats interact with one another….Although we may prioritize poverty and disease, environmental degradation, and weapons differently in light of our individual experiences, we must not lose sight of the connections among them. And we  must reject policies and practices that pit the victims of these problems against one another. We must see these problems as linked, like three connected rings, so that a solution for one improves the situation for the others.

to be continued…..

(c) L.D. Turner/ 2010/All Rights Reserved

 

Methodist Youth of Asia Work for Peace and Justice

L.D. Turner

My heart is warmed this morning as I just read an article by Grace A Tomas, appearing in the United Methodist Communications newsletter, which describes efforts being made by the church’s youth in Southeast Asia. Well over two hundred years after the life of John Wesley and halfway around the world, these young people are carrying on his tradition of loving service in the name of Jesus Christ.

 According to the article, thirty-eight young Methodist leaders from eight different countries have come together in united purpose to form the Sixth Conference Asian Methodist Youth Network. The Sixth Conference, which was held in Cambodia, met under the umbrella of the theme, “Working Together for Justice and Peace in a Globalized World.” In addition to sharing ideas about the future direction of the group, participants also learned more about globalization, its impact on Asia in general and young people in particular.

 The conference also took a long, hard look at the HIV/AIDS issue, which is a major problem in the region. In Tomas’ excellent article, she states that the network’s purpose is:

 …to bring together young people of Asian churches rooted in the Wesleyan tradition in order to provide them the opportunity to share and strengthen one another and plan partnerships and cooperative efforts.

 Participating countries included Taiwan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Indonesia, the Phillippines, Myanmar, and Cambodia.

 

United Methodist Church Aims At Relevance and Global Service (Part Two)

L.D. Turner

(continued from Part One)

Stressing the need for an honest appraisal of our situation, the Foundation Document places great emphasis on the need for us to see ourselves in the larger context of God’s great story. Further, we are to find our own personal stories, both as individuals and as congregations, in the parameters of the Creator’s big picture.

 We must prepare our hearts and minds by turning to God, placing all anxiety, loss, and grief before the One who is our ever present help in time of trouble. And, with God’s grace, we remember the story that guides and sustains us, holds us accountable, and gives us hope. It is the story that begins with God’s loving gift of creation and culminates in God’s promise of renewal for all. It is the story of the Word made flesh, the Incarnation, God’s presence with us. It is the story of Jesus’ ministry to the most vulnerable, his denunciation of violence, greed, and oppression, and his call to discipleship. It is the story of resurrection, of triumph of life over death, and the promise of new life in Christ. And it is the story of transformation, from old to new, from woundedness to wholeness, and from injustice and violence to the embrace of righteousness and peace.

 When I first read these words and prayerfully reflected upon the vision of God’s great story of restoration and renewal, I experienced once again what I can best describe as “the passion of personal calling.” I sensed anew my reasons for being a Christian in general and a Methodist in particular. And as mentioned earlier, my own story, and yours as well, exists within the context of God’s great epic of healing and renewal. Humankind, however, has not always played its role to perfection and the document clearly points out some of our areas of chronic failure:

 We have a role to play in this story, but we have not faithfully performed it. God entrusted us with creation. But instead, of faithfully caring for our peaceful planet and its people, we have neglected the poor, polluted our air and water, and filled our communities with instruments of war. We have turned our backs on God and one another. By obstructing God’s will, we have contributed to pandemic poverty and disease, environmental degradation, and the proliferation of weapons and violence. Around the world, we feel the effects of this interconnected trio in different ways and to varying degrees, but there is no doubt that we all are experiencing elements of the same storm.

 The Foundation Document places emphasis on the fact that this trio of issues, poverty, the environment, and weapons/violence are all impacted in an interconnected manner and, as a result, the impact on one compounds the effects of the others. It is for this reason that programs and policies that address just one of these issues, although well-meaning, have little lasting effect. With the passage of time, this tragic reality has resulted in what the Council of Bishops refers to as webs of brokenness, including:

 Resource scarcity elevated to warfare

Injustice against migrants

Energy crisis

Environmental racism

Economic globalization

Violence against the most vulnerable, especially women and girls.

 God’s Promise and Our Purpose

 It is vital that we remember that the title of this document, God’s Renewed Creation, also has a subtitle: Call to Hope and Action. Although the situation just described seems overwhelmingly bleak, it is important to recall that it is God who is still active and that despite appearances, we have great reason to hope for better days.

 It is understandable to look out on this broken and suffering world and feel despair. But the brokenness and suffering are not the complete story. They are part of our experience, but not the sum total of it. Amidst corruption, there is honesty; amidst greed, there is generosity; amidst killing, there is compassion; amidst destruction, there is preservation; amidst apathy, there is righteous indignation, holy dissatisfaction, and a passion for the possible. If we look carefully, we see seeds of hope that can be cultivated by God’s Spirit.

 I, for one, can see the vision described by the Council of Bishops. I, too, have a passion for the possible and firmly believe that the people of the United Methodist Church can and will rise to answer God’s call in this time of great challenge and unlimited opportunity. The following words from Jeremiah are often taken as relating to individual believers, but are equally applicable to humankind as a whole:

 For I know I have plans for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jer. 29:11)

 And I am also reminded of Paul’s words of wisdom in Romans 8:28:

 For all things work together for the good of those who love God and who are called according to his purpose.

  Open Eyes – Open Hearts – Open Hands

 As the Foundation Document transitions from problem to solution, the Council of Bishops reminds us that God is already at work in the world. Our task is to “open our eyes to see God’s vision, open our hearts to receive God’s grace, and open our hands to do the work God calls us to do.”

 We engage in spiritual practices such as the classic disciplines which help open our eyes so that we may see God’s vision and what he is doing at this particular point in time. As the Foundation Document clearly states, as our eyes are opened we are better able to see the action of God’s Spirit and on a more personal level, we are better equipped to see our roles as channels for God’s blessing. Our vision becomes more holistic and encompassing:

 When we open our eyes to God’s vision, we no longer see a listed of isolated problems affecting disconnected people, plants, and animals. Rather, we see on interconnected system that “groans in travail” (Rom. 8:22). We see that the threats to peace, people, and planet earth are related to one another, and God’s vision encompasses complete global health.

  Many of us wander through our days in sort of a mental fog, beset by myriad concerns and multiple responsibilities. It is as if we are on automatic pilot, meandering along our habituated rounds in a state of awareness that is oblivious to the details of our surroundings. What is most unfortunate about this reality is the fact that God often chooses to speak to us through the events of our daily lives but we, far removed from what is happening around us, remain oblivious to the sanctity of these divine encounters. It is only through eyes that are open and sensitive to the movements of God and the ways of the Spirit that we can discern what God is doing in the world. When the Lord says, “Behold, I am doing a new thing,” it is tragic that instead of hearing his instructive voice, we are busy thinking about what we want for lunch.

 In keeping with our church’s Wesleyan roots, the Council of Bishops connects the need for “open eyes” with John Wesley’s understanding of “the natural image of God.” Created as spiritual beings in the image of God, we have been blessed with a trio of gifts that Wesley saw as indispensable in relating to God and our neighbor, while at the same time remaining an independent being.

 The first gift is the gift of reason, which enables us to organize things, make judgments, and perceive the world in a rational manner. The second gift is will and this, first and foremost, involves our capacity to consecrate our lives to God, as well as to make commitments to others and to follow through on goals, projects, and the like. Fundamentally, our will enables us to be responsible, trustworthy human beings. The third divine gift is our freedom. God was us to be moral free agents rather than robots. It is our freedom to choose or reject God’s offer of participation in the unfolding of his divine story and, because we have freedom, we are morally answerable for our choices. This freedom lies at the heart of Armenian thought and the Wesleyan tradition.

 Wesley taught that it is precisely when we use these divine gifts that we manifest the natural image of God and this view is clearly stated in the Foundation Document:

 …we reflect the natural image of God when we exercise our reason for accurate understanding and good judgment, and when we respond to God’s grace by freely exercising our will to choose good and resist evil. We open our eyes in order to perceive the world accurately, understand our roles and responsibilities, and exercise good judgment.

(c) L.D. Turner 2009/All Rights Reserved

 

United Methodist Church Aims at Relevance and Global Service

L. D. Turner

If you are a regular visitor to this site, you know that I often write about the major changes that are changing the face of institutional Christianity across the board. You will also recall that I have a sincere love and passion for the church, despite its many shortcomings, and genuinely believe that Christianity, when rightly practiced, has much to offer our hurting world. With its inherent creativity, its heart of compassion, and its depth of resources, the church universal is strategically positioned to become a positive force in helping shape our culture as this turbulent century progresses. The key to bringing these positive contributions to fruition is a willingness on the part of the church to be creative, progressive, flexible, open, and proactive.

 I have been a member of the United Methodist Church for many years and am proud to say that our church is moving forward in an attempt to make itself a positive and beneficial force in the world and, in keeping with its mantra of “open hearts, open minds, and open doors, is doing so in a creative and exciting way. The UMC “Rethink Church” programs, along with the Ten Thousand Doors initiative, are but two examples of this.

 Most recently, however, I came across a document that reminded me why, early on in my adult life, I chose to become a Methodist. The document I am referring to explains the rationale behind the UMC initiative entitled, God’s Renewed Creation: Call to Hope and Action. It is the “Foundation Document” for the initiative and is authored by the UMC Council of Bishops. After reading this “Call to Hope and Action” my Wesleyan fires were blazing to say the least. And while I am sincere in my belief that denominational differences in this country are far too overblown, this document illustrates the social principles of the UMC.

 “God’s Renewed Creation” maintains the firm commitment of the 1986 Council , namely that “nuclear deterrence is a position that cannot receive the church’s blessing. These documents, generated in 2009, also build on the observations of the earlier Council, that the nuclear crisis threatens “planet earth itself,” that the arms race “destroys millions of lives in conventional wars, repressive violence, and massive poverty,” and that the “arms race is a social justice issue, not only a war and peace issue.”

 The 2009 Council of Bishops expanded its focus to include three interrelated threats:

 Pandemic poverty and disease;

• Environmental degradation and climate change, and
• A world awash with weapons and violence.

 “God’s Renewed Creation” gives me both hope and a sense of loyal pride at being a part of the United Methodist Church as well as the Wesleyan tradition of social ministry. Recognizing that the world as we know it has become an interrelated, interdependent global entity, the UMC leadership is taking a proactive stance in terms of addressing some of humanity’s most critical issues. Also recognizing that the church has historically been part of the problems in our world, the Council of Bishops now seeks to become a creative and transformative part of the solution.

 The United Methodist Church has the vision to see that God is doing a “new work” in the world and is taking positive measures to be an integral part of God’s work at this critical point in our planet’s history. Rather than taking a myopic, “what’s in it for us” approach to humankind’s crucial problems, the Council of Bishops has given voice to a vision that is much broader in scope and, in keeping with the Wesleyan heritage of befriending the hurting and the marginalized, seeks to bring God’s healing grace to those who suffer the most in this time of rapid change.

 The “Call to Hope and Action” reflects the United Methodist Church’s mission to “Make Disciples of Jesus Christ for the Transformation of the World.” Additionally, the vision of God’s Renewed Creation clearly reflects the denomination’s “Four Areas of Focus.” The Foundation Document states:

 We know the world is being transformed and we seek to cooperate with God’s renewing Spirit, especially through our denominations Four Areas of Focus: (1) developing principled Christian leaders for the church and the world, (2) creating new places for new people and renewing existing congregations, (3) engaging in ministry with the poor, and (4) stamping out the killer diseases of poverty. Focusing on these four areas will shape our discipleship such that those who seek God will see an image in our behavior that is inviting, encouraging, healing, and inspiring.

 As a United Methodist, I clearly see the personal implications of these four areas of focus and, along with the biblical teachings of the Master, use them as a matrix through which I organize my personal spiritual disciplines. I especially find the principles of inviting, encouraging, healing, and inspiring helpful reminders for putting into practice what I have come to call proactive hospitality. This type of hospitality is not only sensitive to the everyday, routine ways of being open and hospitable in our homes and churches, but also actively looks for ways we can practice hospitality to others, even if it is nothing more than smiling and saying hello.

 Personally, I seek to practice proactive hospitality by holding doors open for people and allowing them to enter before I do. This may seem like a very small thing and perhaps it is. However, I have found this to be a simple practice that has enormous benefit when carried out over a period of time.

 The Foundation Document takes great care to show how the various problems facing humankind in this age are interrelated. For example, the issue of climate change is examined from an angle somewhat different than the norm. Rather than focusing on whether or not climate change is man-made or part of a natural cycle, the Council of Bishops views this vital issue in terms of its impact on those living under the thumb of oppressive poverty. In addition, climate change and poverty are seen as interconnected with violence and the sale of arms.

 Climate change poses a particular threat to the world’s poor because it increases the spread of diseases like malaria and causes conflicts over dwindling natural resources. Easy access to small arms ensures that such conflicts turn deadly, and the specter of a nuclear war that would destroy the world continues to loom over us.

 The Foundation Document was created out of the Council of Bishops being “called to speak a word of hope and action.” The document is also a product of the church’s sensing of God doing a new things, as described in Isaiah 43:19:

 Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?

 As I read over the document the first time I was able to experience that sense of calling – that blessed sense of God’s love in action in the world. I understood at a deeper level that we, indeed, are living in a critical era in the world’s history – an age in which the matrix of the future is beginning to take shape. The Foundation Document, which came into being in reaction to the critical nature of our time, addresses the needs of our age – an age the document calls “a hinge of history. In terms of its contents, the Foundation Document of God’s Renewed Creation:

 Describes the interconnected nature of poverty and disease, environmental degradation and weapons and violence through stories of those most affected;

• Shares information about Christian scriptures and beliefs, and our Wesleyan heritage in order to provide a foundation for our response.
• Recommends a variety of actions; and
• Reminds us of the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the great sources of encouragement and hope all around us.

 To be continued

 © L.D. Turner 2009/ All Rights Reserved

 

Today’s Encouraging Word

“Spiritual formation is the process through which those who love and trust Jesus Christ effectively take on his character. When this process is what it should be, they increasingly live their lives as he would if he were in their place. Their outward conformity to his example and his instructions rises toward fullness as their inward sources of action take on the same character as his. They become more and more to share his vision, love, hope, feelings, and habits….This process of “conformation to Christ,” as we might more appropriately call it, is constantly supported by grace and otherwise would be impossible. But it is not therefore passive. Grace is opposed to earning, not effort. In fact, nothing inspires and enhances effort like the experience of grace.”

Dallas Willard

(from The Great Omission)

 

Cultivating Sacred Character: The Role of Spiritual Disciplines (Part Two)

L. Dwight Turner

If we ever hope to grow into the fullness of Christ as Paul promised we could, we not only have to imitate Christ. Although the “What Would Jesus Do?” teaching was both admirable and beneficial, it did not go to the core of the issue. If we want to manifest the character, the mind, and the heart of Jesus, we have to live as he lived. This means, among other things, that we have to practice the spiritual disciplines of our faith.

 

I am always fascinated by those folks who are threatened by the spiritual disciplines and especially those writers and teachers who warn us against practicing the disciplines. These folks go so far as to infer that the practice of spiritual disciplines is at best unscriptural and at worst, from the bowels of hell.

 

Nothing could be farther from the truth.

 

I don’t know what scriptures these teachers are reading from, but it surely isn’t the Bible and certainly not the four Gospels. Time after time we read accounts of Jesus going off in solitude to pray and engage in fasting. His consistent use of scriptural references tells us clearly that he engaged in the practice of sacred study. And in one of the most telling passages, Jesus went off alone and prayed all night long. The most telling aspect of this passage is the fact that Jesus did this before choosing the twelve apostles.

 

I can think of no other way to put it: to state that Jesus did not practice spiritual disciplines is sheer lunacy.

 

The classical spiritual disciplines of the Christian faith have been practiced for centuries, starting with Christ himself and carrying forward throughout the Church’s history. These disciplines do not “save us” in the sense of justifying us before a Holy God or granting us brownie points for spiritual behavior. As Paul clearly tells us, it is God’s grace that saves us and, logically extended, it is God’s grace and the power of the Holy Spirit that ultimately sanctifies us and helps us lead more holy lives. Does that mean there is nothing left for us to do? Hardly! Paul tells us to “work out our salvation with trembling” and James states in a most straightforward manner that “faith without works is dead.” There is plenty left for us to do and that is where the spiritual disciplines come in.

 

My experience has been that practicing the spiritual disciplines has helped me to accomplish several important milestones in my walk of faith. First, as their name implies, the spiritual disciplines have helped me to become a more disciplined person. By practicing the spiritual disciplines, especially prayer, contemplation, meditation, solitude, and Bible study, I have become a more steadfast follower of Christ. Second, practicing the disciplines have helped me reduce and even eliminate some of the major strongholds of resistance I have to leading a spiritual life. Let’s face facts: following the teachings of Christ is not something you or I come to naturally. Due to our inherent nature of “flesh,” we are not so inclined to set aside times for communion with God through studying scripture or engaging in practices like prayer, meditation, and solitude. To the contrary, for many of us it seems almost second nature to avoid getting to close to God. Instead, we tend to either ignore him or do whatever we can to minimize our moments of divine contact.

 

Thirdly, and I find this to be the most beneficial aspect of the practice of the disciplines, by engaging in these sacred practices I am brought to a place of receptivity to God’s presence and action in my life. Yes, it is God’s grace toward me and the work of the Holy Spirit that brings about desired change in my life. However, if my hands are not empty, I cannot receive this gift of grace and Spirit. By this I mean that I must be in a space of receptivity in order to receive. It is precisely the practice of the spiritual disciplines that brings this about.

 

I am reminded of the biblical characters Zacchaeus and Bartimaeus, two individuals who seemed to understand that Jesus was no ordinary person and went to great lengths to place themselves in a position to receive whatever it was that he might have to offer. Scripture tells us that Zacchaeus would never have been drafted by an NBA team as a potential center. A very short man, Zacchaeus had to shimmy up a tree right in Jesus’ path in order to even get a glimpse of the great rabbi. The tax collector ended up getting more than he bargained for. Jesus saw Zacchaeus perched up on the limb of the tree and called him by name. Not only that, he summoned the short little man down from his perch and to Zacchaeus’ astonishment, said, “Guess who’s coming to dinner?”

 

If Zacchaeus had not placed himself in a position of receptivity, chances are the story would have unfolded in a much different manner.

 

Bartimaeus also had a divine encounter with Jesus by making himself available. As Luke 18: 35-43 unfolds, we learn that Bartimaeus is a blind beggar sitting on a roadside near Jericho. While sitting there begging, he hears a distant commotion that steadily grows louder and louder. When he asked those standing around him, a sizable crowd by now, what was going on they informed his that Jesus of Nazareth and his disciples were approaching.

 

Blind but not deaf, Bartimaeus had no doubt heard of the miracle working itinerant rabbi and immediately wanted to make sure he could somehow get to the great teacher before he passed by.

 

“Jesus, Son of David, have mercy upon me,” came the cry from Bartimaeus’ heart.

 

Those gathered around as well as those leading the procession, most likely some of the big wigs from Jericho, told Bartimaeus to pipe down and keep quiet.

 

Undeterred, the blind beggar shouted even louder.

 

“Jesus, Son of David, have mercy upon me.”

 

Indignant, those around the social outcast told him even more strongly to shut up or else. Not wanting to offend the rabbi, chances are they might have even roughed the beggar up a little.

 

Jesus, however, stopped and to everyone’s astonishment I’m sure, asked Bartimaeus what he wanted. Bartimaeus by this time had removed his cloak and headed toward Jesus, who promptly healed him on the spot.

 

As far as I am concerned, the removal of the coat is a significant aspect of the encounter between the blind beggar and the Son of God. Bartimaeus, indeed, made himself available – receptive – in a position to receive the gift of healing from Christ. The removal of his coat implies a taking off of impediments that may block the flow of blessings from the Lord. It is the consistent practice of the classical spiritual traditions that assists in melting away those things that stand in the way of our more intimate contact with the Lord.

 

Countless numbers of sincere Christians desire just that: a more intimate contact with God. Recognizing that something deeper must be available in the Christian journey, these seekers are a bit different from those spiritual aspirants one might find in some of the more occult or New Age groups. Although those seeking the Light through these various paths are many times sincere enough, they are not sure exactly what it is they are trying to find. Conversely, many of the Christ-followers I encounter either at LifeBrook or at various churches are quite clear about their spiritual goal: they want to establish a deeper, abiding relationship with the Divine Source – God.

 

Granted, there are many other Christians who are not so much interested in discipleship in general and the deeper, more abiding realties that can only be found through practicing a disciplined life. These believers figure they have had their ticket to heaven punched and that is all that really matters to them. Quite satisfied to maintain the appearance of spirituality, these folks warm the pews with their backsides while their spiritual hearts grow increasingly cold. As the light placed in them by God at their conversion fades to a predictable dimness, they are unable to articulate even the most rudimentary knowledge of the contents of their faith. They can, however, bring one heck of a casserole to the Wednesday night potluck.

 

In addition to these two types of believers, those who want something deeper and more transformative and those who are content to maintain a cosmetic Christianity, there is a third type we need to briefly examine. In this case, these Christians perhaps want something of more genuine substance in their walk with Christ, but they have rarely expended much spiritual energy in pursuit of authentic spiritual formation. They may have had a number of surface experiences, but have never gone far beyond that. Content to splash about the wading pool of Christian discipleship, these folks usually won’t even put on a snorkel. Noted expert on the spiritual disciplines Donald S. Whitney paints a vivid portrait of the spiritual lives of these believers:

 

So many professing Christians are so spiritually undisciplined that they seem to have little fruit and power in their lives. I’ve seen men and women who discipline themselves for the purpose of excelling in their profession discipline themselves very little “for the purpose of godliness.” I’ve seen Christians who are faithful to the church of God, who frequently demonstrate genuine enthusiasm for the things of God, and who dearly love the Word of God, trivialize their effectiveness of the Kingdom of God through lack of discipline. Spiritually they are a mile wide and an inch deep. They are no deep, time-worn channels of communing discipline between them and God. They have dabbled in everything but disciplined themselves in nothing.

 

I hold the firm conviction that the Holy Spirit works through the spiritual disciplines in ways that are profound and transformative. The Spirit uses these classical spiritual exercises as a sort of matrix through which he can do his deeper and more intimate work. Therefore, it behooves us as true disciples to make it a point to not only become acquainted with these disciplines of grace, but to make them an integral part of our daily walk of faith.

(c) L.D. Turner 2009/All Rights Reserved

 

Do You Hear What I Hear?

L. Dwight Turner

Although many things in the modern world conspire to deafen us to the subtle voice of the Father, rest assured that his voice is indeed there. God calls to us continually, asking us to put down our nets and, like the fishermen disciples of old, come and follow. Jesus tells us in John 6:44 that no one comes to him unless the Father first draws him. What this means in highly practical terms is that we not only have a God, we have a proactive God that seeks relationship with us. Our end of the bargain is to put ourselves into a position of deepening receptivity, so that we might hear his voice more clearly and experience his love more intensely.

 There are others who hear God’s voice and respond, accepting his offer of grace, forgiveness, and acceptance into his blessed family. These are generally sincere disciples and are often quite active in their local church fellowship. They also involve themselves in service work and serve the Master to the best of their ability. Yet it is these very people – these sincere followers of the Lord – who, in their heart of hearts, often find themselves asking, “Isn’t there something more to the Christian life? I feel like something is missing. I can’t put my finger on it, but there is a vague emptiness…”

 It is to these genuine disciples that the still, small voice comes beckoning in the silence of a sleepless night, or drifting in on the golden leaves of an autumn wind. That irresistible, persistent voice that repeatedly whispers:

 Come, follow me….

 When we find ourselves in such a situation, we need to recognize that we are both blessed and vulnerable. We are blessed in that the divine source, the creative power that put this awe-inspiring universe together, seeks relationship with us. The incomprehensible intelligence that maintains all that we see and even more remarkably, the mysterious quantum realm that we don’t see, together in harmonious balance desires intimacy with us – intimacy beyond anything we have ever known.

 Yes, friend, God calls to us in a gentle voice that only the mystic can truly hear. And in that persistent calling, the Creator invites us to join in the mysterious dance of spiritual transformation. Most amazingly, he is not calling us to go into a monastic hideaway or a hermit’s cave, but to stay put right where we are. And if we stay and we become open and discerning, he will use the mundane events of our daily round as his methodology of instruction. More often than not, God’s classroom is characterized by the pedagogy of the ordinary and it is precisely in the realm of the unremarkable that true divine alchemy occurs. Sue Monk Kidd, a woman who knows this process through personal experience, describes it this way:

 It seems to me that Christ continually calls us through the daily events of our lives…In moments like these God stirs the waters of our lives and beckons us beyond where we are to a new dimension of closeness with Him…God desires to transform certain experiences of ours into awakening events. These may be our most common moments, but if we let them they can become doorways to a deeper encounter with Him. Who knows at what moment we may begin to wake up to the astonishing fact that Emmanuel (God with us) is still God’s name, that every moment the Word of God, Jesus Christ, is coming to us.

 I know that in my experience, God calls me in ways I never expected. I have discerned his voice in the sacred silence of meditative stillness and his message has often slapped me to my senses as it spoke from the pages of Holy Scripture. I have also learned to be increasingly sensitive to his call as manifest in the choreographic harmony of the natural world and especially when it dances in the eyes of a child.

 If you want to validate the existence of this divine presence, forget your test tubes, your state-of-the-art laboratories, and your most advanced computer programs. Instead, go find a child and spend the day with them. Any kid can teach you more about the inner workings of this energy, what the Chinese call the ‘Dao, than an entire university physics faculty.

Children are one of the most spectacular yet subtly sublime gifts God can bestow upon us. God surprised and blessed my wife and I with the birth of Salina in May, 2004. For me, it was particularly surprising as I was 55 at the time. Now I am 60 and Salina celebrated her fifth birthday a few months back. In this past half-decade, I have been given a new perspective on why Jesus told us to be as little children if we wanted to see the kingdom.

Salina has always amazed me with her curiosity, her sense of discovery, and especially her spontaneous wonder and awe as she encounters things new and exciting. Further, she never tires of things that strike her fancy, especially if I do something that she likes but has never really seen before. I am reminded, for example, when I first showed her how to blow bubbles with bubble gum. For me, it was old hat – but for her, this simple act was like seeing a rainbow for the first time or discovering the wonders of ice cream. Whenever I produced a large, pink bubble as if by magic, she would pop it with her hand, laugh in that way that only children can laugh, and say, “Do it again, Daddy; do it again.”

This amazing ability to turn something new into an almost sacred event is, I think, part of that unsullied and untainted aspect of the image of God that we are blessed with in our creation. Moreover, children never seem to tire of monotony, at least until they get a bit older. At those miracle ages of two through five or so, kids just seem to revel in both newness and repetition. I am reminded of the famous words of G.K. Chesterton:

Because children have abounding vitality, because they are in spirit fierce and free, therefore they want things repeated and unchanged. They always say, “Do it again”; and the grown-up person does it again until he is nearly dead. For grown-up people are not strong enough to exult in monotony. But perhaps God is strong enough to exult in monotony. It is possible God says every morning, “Do it again” to the sun; and every evening, “Do it again” to the moon. It may not be automatic necessity to make all daisies appear alike; it may be that God makes every daisy separately, but has never grown tired of making them. It may be that He has the eternal appetite for infancy: for we have sinned and grown old, and our Father is younger than we.”

Sometimes when I sit quietly and open myself to what Chesterton says in these few words and what the Holy Spirit speaks to me when I reflect on them, I am literally stunned into silence; and then I shiver.

Children have not forgotten how to experience our world with a sense of wonder and awe. Noted Jewish philosopher Abraham Heschel, one of my very favorite authors, calls this capacity for reverence in life “radical amazement” and affirms that the spiritual journey cannot be completed until we reattain this inborn spiritual quality. Heschel makes this statement, “The beginning of awe is wonder and the beginning of wisdom is awe.” When I first discovered these words, I pondered on the meaning for weeks and eventually discovered by doing so I totally lost their true import. I have come to see that Heschel is alluding to the fact that true wisdom begins with the experience of awe, and this basic sense of “radical amazement” has its birth in a childlike wonder at the incredible thing we flippantly call “life” ; the unfathomable creation that surrounds us every moment. I will let Heschel say the rest:

The secret of every being is the divine care and concern that are invested in it. Something sacred is at stake in every event…..The meaning of awe is to realize that life takes place under wide horizons, horizons that range beyond the span of an individual life or even the life of a nation, a generation, or an era. Awe enables us to perceive in the world intimations of the divine, to sense in small things the beginning of infinite significance, to sense the ultimate in the common and simple; to feel in the rush of the passing the stillness of the eternal.

Deep in my personal spirit, when it is connected with and animated by the Holy Spirit, I know with certainty that my daughter Salina innately understands this. She cannot articulate it with the eloquence of Heschel but she expresses this sense of radical amazement nonetheless. Every time she giggles when Daddy blows a bubble; every time she sits on the deck and watches birds feeding in the back yard and cows feeding in the field beyond; every time her eyes dance with wonder when she sees a sunset and screams, “Look Daddy, God is smiling,” – I know she gets it just as much as Heschel ever did and just as much as I long to once again.

I am always amazed at how she sees the world in all its glory, the way God intended it to be seen, and responds without any sense of guile or bewilderment. Just yesterday we stopped the car along a rural lane near our home to watch a group of wild geese circle a field, then land in a large pond. My daughter’s eyes grew wide as she saw these birds gracefully glide almost silently on to the surface of the water. She sat there spellbound as she quietly took in this aspect of God’s remarkable world.

 My grandfather was in many ways my first spiritual director. Working as a game warden, a career that my father also pursued, he spent most of his time in natural settings and he had this uncanny ability to see the intricate and interconnected patterns that were everywhere to be witnessed if a person only had “eyes to see.” My grandfather often said that it was important to see each new day with what he called “fresh eyes.” A deeply spiritual man, he rarely attended the Baptist Church where my grandmother was an active member. Instead, he often went off into the woods of north Alabama with one of us grandkids in tow, giving us his own version of Sunday School.

 I don’t say this to discount the importance of church-going, only to say that, for my grandfather, it was not a high priority. Coming from a family with a long tradition of Quakerism, my grandfather treasured silence and solitude and often told me that my “inner light” could best be seen on a calm lake or pristine mountaintop. According to my grandfather, the best way to rediscover my “fresh eyes” was to go into nature and go into “the sacred silence,” then just notice what was going on around me. Yesterday, as I watched Salina as she “noticed” the geese as they went about their business, I understood deeply that she had “fresh eyes” and that most children possessed this significant talent, at least until they were educated out of it.

 I also understood why my grandfather never said I needed to develop fresh eyes; he always said I needed to rediscover them. The childlike perspective of awe and wonder that we all possessed when we were young is still there. Our task, with the divine assistance of the Holy Spirit, is to go through the cognitive clutter we have all accumulated and find it once again.

 On the way home I also recalled a passage from a remarkable little book, written by Jeanne Gowen Dennis. The book is entitled, Running Barefoot on Holy Ground and subtitled, Childlike Intimacy With God. A fine and educative book, “Running Barefoot” discusses the notion of having fresh eyes. Let’s listen to the author:

 “Why do children notice so many things that adults miss? Maybe being closer to the ground gives them an advantage. Perhaps it’s because they’re discovering the wonders of the world around them for the first, second, or twentieth time, and somehow the novelty has not yet worn off. Unlike most adults, little children also pay attention to details. We are so distracted by our responsibilities that we often miss what is right before us. Perhaps we should take regular walks with toddlers and let them lead us along. Still, we’ll only learn to see through their eyes if we use the time to exercise our sight, not just our bodies.”

 Having Salina around has been a blessing in many wonderful ways, but one of the most beneficial spiritual lessons she has brought my way is helping me rediscover my fresh eyes – helping me learn to see again. She has in some magnificent manner taught me the spiritual discipline of “noticing.” For example, there was the time she looked into a clear night sky at a quarter-moon and said, “Look, it’s just like my fingernail,” or the occasion when she sat in wondrous rapture watching three butterflies flitting about on our back deck. As the two of us “noticed” the choreography of their airborne dance, I became aware that I was, for a few brief moments, actually seeing what was going on. It was, in a word, exhilarating.

 All of this comes natural to children, but we adults must now somehow train ourselves to be open to the marvels God parades before us on a daily basis. It not only involves “slowing down to smell the roses,” no – it goes much deeper than that.  In my experience, I have had to learn to live in my body again; allowing myself enough time to become reacquainted with my five basis senses and perhaps discover a few I didn’t know, or more likely forgot, that I even had. In order to see like a child, I needed to rediscover how to experience life in the pristine clarity of the moment – unsullied by morbid memories or future fears.

 I not only needed to learn how to see – I needed to learn how to be.

 A good way to begin this process of rediscovery is by learning to pay attention to what is coming in through your senses. Pick on of your senses, say hearing, and go outside and just spend five minutes paying attention to what you hear – the birds chirping in the trees, a distant plane overhead, a passing truck on the Interstate two miles away. Don’t strain to do this; simply allow the sounds to come in and just notice them. Just allow them to be what they are and just allow yourself to just be. I have found it useful to spend about three days on each one of my senses and to keep a journal of my experiences. I record what I noticed and also what prevented me from being present to my surroundings. For me, as well as others I have taught to use this exercise, let the sense of vision be the last one you focus on. I can’t explain why this seems to be the best way to do this, all I can say is, for the majority of people, it works best that way.

 In conclusion, let me suggest one other thing that might seem a bit silly to you. You may, in fact, think this is childish. Yet, when you think about it, that’s the whole point, isn’t it. Try doing things the way a young child does them. Experiment with your body and your posture. What do I mean? I’ll close with this quotation, again from Dennis’ book:

 “To see as children see, all our senses must be alert. New worlds open up when children exercise their power of sight. They see with fresh eyes – fully, simply, and in intricate detail. Young children experience each new discovery to the fullest, first with their mouths, then with their hands and fingers, and finally with their whole beings. They “see” with all their senses and in every possible position: on their knees, on their stomachs, on their backs, upside down, backward, and sideways. They explore the world with eyes wide open, closed, or squinted; through drinking glasses or cellophane; from inside cabinets, under coffee tables, and even in mirrors.”

 If you apply these ideas you may, like my daughter Salina and the great poet William Blake, discover (rediscover) that you “hold infinity in the palm of your hand.”

 © L.D. Turner 2009/All Rights Reserved

 

Pseudo-Repentance: The Pandemic of Superficiality

L. Dwight Turner

Over the past few days the Spirit has graciously led me to see that it all begins with “repentance.” The theme starts early in scripture, is emphasized in Psalms and the Prophets, and the New Testament is loaded with that word – repentance.

 

John the Baptist screamed it and Jesus’ first mission words recorded included it: Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven draws near. Can we deny in any way that repentance is the key to the door of the Christian way? I think not.

 

In its most simple yet accurate definition, repentance is saying yes to Christ. The official definition is something like “to turn, or change direction” and it specifically implies “a change of the mind.” These are basic truths no doubt, but what is it that motivates and causes this process to begin? One thing:

 

Saying yes to Christ and really meaning it.

 

When we truly repent, we involve ourselves in the process of “consecration.” We consecrate our minds, hearts, wills, and bodies to God. From what I can gather, true repentance, the kind of repentance that makes a difference in a persons life – the kind of repentance that results in conversion and leads to transformation – is an event that is initiated by God and completed by us. We come to understand what is being offered, what is required, and we either accept the proposal or we reject it.

 

Yet things are rarely that cut and dry. Like most things involving humans, we tend to cloud even the most crystal clear situations and complicate things needlessly.

 

As I look at my own history with the faith, coupled with what I see going on in the Body of Christ as a whole, and what I see is something that is a bit puzzling and even more disturbing. Based on my own behavior and that of many others, it would seem that either we never really understood what repentance was all about and made an ill-informed decision, or, worse still, maybe we never really repented.

 

I can only answer this issue where I am concerned. I think, after honestly looking at my own history with Christianity, that I never truly repented. I never really intended to make the “complete turn” that true repentance calls for. It is hard for me to acknowledge this, but the facts lay bare the reality and truth of what I am saying. My initial repentance was not much more than skin deep and it never, ever, reached the level of my deeper mind and certainly never penetrated my heart. The result was that after a few years of youthful exuberance and activity, things leveled off into a lukewarm routine of going through the motions.

 

By the grace of God I finally woke up to all of this, but I discovered that it was so easy to repeat the same mistake. When ever I needed to truly repent, I would often think that I had when in actuality, all I had accomplished was to push a particular issue to the back burner for a time, rather than really deal with it.

 

I think I am not alone in this tendency toward “pseudo-repentance.”

 

I have also come to believe that part of the problem in all of this is the fact that the church does a generally poor job of letting believers know what repentance is really all about. We become so concerned about getting people “saved” or getting them through the church doors and into a pew that we fail to let new believers in on a central fact of the faith. Although God’s grace is freely given, much is required if you are to become a true disciple.

 

New and/or prospective converts need to hear the fundamental truth that Christianity is not about getting you into heaven; its about getting heaven into you.

 

Peter Vardy wrote a great little book entitled, And if it’s True? I am not sure it is even in print anymore. I found my copy of it years ago at a used book store, yet I can safely say it was a book that literally stopped my in my tracks. Vardy speaks clearly about what one has to consider when it comes to taking on this thing called Christianity and coming under the mastership of this being called Jesus Christ. Getting right to the meat of the matter, Vardy says:

 

Christianity calls each of us to believe and trust in God, a belief and trust based on love. This is not simply a matter of intellectual assent….It is a matter of the truth of Christianity becoming ‘true for you’, as an individual. Only when Christianity becomes true for you so that you are willing to stake your whole life on it, does it really become true in your own case.

Belief that God exists does not come near to what Christianity is about. It is only when the factual truth of Christianity becomes ‘true for us’ so that it becomes the center of our lives around which our whole existence revolves that we, as individuals, can see what Christianity involves….it means each of us coming to understand what it is for Christianity to become ‘true for me’, what Christianity is going to involve when it is taken on board and lived. Once we see and understand this, we then each of us have to decide whether or not we wish to try to live it – but that is our free choice. Until we have understood what is involved, however, we cannot even make the decision.

Christianity requires passion and total commitment – a commitment to a lived love relationship with God. The relationship has practical consequences and these can, to an extent, be foreseen.

‘What does it mean to be a Christian?’ ….The important way of looking at this question, however, is to see it as asking each of us, ‘What does it mean for me to be a Christian?’ This is much, much more uncomfortable and challenging. There is no single right answer – each of us needs to think the answer through for ourselves.

 

If you find that your walk of faith has not been what you feel it should be, then I would suggest that you spend a bit of time really studying what Vardy has said in this short passage. You may even try to get your hands on a copy of the book as I am sure it can be found somewhere. But be prepared to take an honest, hard appraisal of your walk of faith and also be prepared to practice a bit of brutal honesty with yourself. It may not be the most pleasant exercise you have ever undertaken, but I can say with assurance, for many of you, it will be far from a waste of time.

 

In fact, it may be life changing in ways you would have never imagined.

 

© L.D. Turner 2009/All Rights Reserved