The following is an excerpt from Rob Bell's "Jesus Wants To Save Christians." The title of the chapter is "Swollen-Bellied Black Babies, Soccer Moms on Prozac, and The Mark of The Beast." I highly recommend this book for reading. It's only adding to what's going on inside me and messing me up.
Imagine the average youth group in the average church on the average Sunday. Imagine visiting this youth group and having the pastor say to you, "I just can't get my kids interested in Jesus. Do you have any suggestions?"
How do you respond?
To begin with, the church has a youth group. This is a brand-new idea in church history. A luxury. Everybody in the church doesn't meet all together? All of the babies and older folks and men and women and widows and students aren't in the same room, but they've gone to separate rooms?
And there are resources for this? People and organizational structures and a budget? Let's imagine that in this case, this pastor, this youth pastor, is paid a salary for his or her work. A church with enough resources to pay someone to oversee the students? Once again, this is brand new, almost unheard of in most of the churches in the world, and in church history, a brand-new invention.
This salary can be paid and this building can be built because people in the congregation have surplus. They have fed themselves and their children and bought clothes and houses, and now, after these expenses, there is still money available. And this money is given in an act of generosity to the church, which disperses it to various places, among them the bank account of the pastor.
In many, if not most, of the churches in the world, immediate needs simply don't allow for such luxuries—too many people are hungry, too many don't have a roof, too many are sick—and so any surplus is spent immediately on the basic needs staring them right in the face,
people dying here,
right now,
today.
But this particular church is blessed, and we should be clear about this—it is blessing. It is good. It is fortunate that this particular church doesn't have those issues. This church has enough resources to hire a pastor who had the resources to get training to gather these students in the student room to teach them about the way of Jesus. Many Christians around the world would simply stand in awe of that kind of blessing.
And the students in this church, these are good kids. They are from families who just want to see their kids become good Christians.
Imagine just how much is available to them. They have more at their fingertips than any generation in the history of the world—more information, more entertainment, more ideas, more ways to kill time, more options.
Many of them own more than one pair of shoes.
There are even some among them who have eaten at least one meal every day of their lives.
So, we are talking about a miniscule minority of kids in the world.
At the exit off the highway near their church is a Best Buy and a Chili's and a Circuit City and a McDonald's and a Wal-Mart and a Bed, Bath and Beyond, much like the other towns in their state and in their country. The music they listen to is distributed by one of five major corporations, which also own the movie studios that create the movies they watch, which are also connected to the corporations that create the food they eat and the commercials they watch, which also have significant ties to the clothes they wear and the cell phones they own, and the ring tone on their cell phones, the one by the artist who is signed to the record label that is owned by the same company that owns the cell phone company and the advertising agency that announced the artist's new album, which is owned by the same company that owns the beverage company in whose advertisement the artist appeared, drinking that particular beverage, singing the song that is now a ring tone on the students' phones that they purchased at the mall across the street from the Olive Garden next door to the Home Depot on the other side of the Starbucks.
And so each week they gather to hear a talk from the pastor.
Their pastor tells them about the Jesus revolution.
About Jesus resisting the system.
About the blood of the cross.
About many of the first Christians getting arrested.
About Jesus having dinner with prostitutes and tax collectors.
About people sharing their possessions.
About Jesus telling a man to sell everything.
About the uniqueness of their story in the larger story of redemption.
How do children of the empire understand the Savior who was killed by an empire?
How does a twelve-year-old who has never had hunger pangs that lasted more than an hour understand a story about a twelve-year-old providing fish and bread for thousands of chronically hungry people?
How do kids who are surrounded by more abundance than in any other generation in the history of humanity take seriously a Messiah who said, “I have been anointed to preach good news to the poor”?
How do they fathom that half the world is too poor to feed its kids when their church just spent two years raising money to build an addition to their building?
They gather, they sing, they hear a talk from the pastor, and then they get back in the car with their parent and they go home; the garage door opens up, the car goes in, and the garage door goes down.
This is the revolution?
This is what Jesus had in mind?
And so the youth pastor turns to you and says, again, “I just can't get my students engaged with Jesus. Do you have any suggestions?”
Now that I've got your attention (and possibly offended you) with the title of this post, I want you to read a verse that I haven't been able to get away from for the past month. And quite honestly, I have no idea what to do with it.
Ezekiel 16:49-50: Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy. 50 They put on airs and lived obscene lives. And you know what happened: I did away with them. (NASB and MSG)
So let me ask you again... Are you guilty of Sodomy? Not by the Webster's definition of course but according to this little kick in the face.
Because to me, this sums up America quite well. Before Sodom was judged for the sexual depravity and immorality that we always associate with it, God lists a few things that look eerily familiar...
1. Arrogance 2. Preoccupation with luxurious living, comfort and leisure 3. Ignoring the poor and oppressed and disregarding their needs
Lately, I've been wrestling with all of this. This idea of a comfortable suburbia existence where we just want a quiet life and nice things. This incredible self-absorption in our capitalistic society that is nothing more than a materialistic grab at the American dream, the building of an empire and our own little personal kingdoms.Â
Material things and abundant blessing were always intended to be for others, not to build and preserve our little empires whether personal, in business, or church. Blessing should never be misconstrued as favoritism or entitlement.
What I hate most is that it's so damned difficult to break from this system because it's so pervasive. It's everywhere. It's in our culture. It's in me. It's in you. And sad to say, it's in the church which shouldn't surprise us because the church is me and you.
Arrogance... check. The pinnacle of "having arrived" is found in that published book or amount of Twitter followers or RSS readers or blog hits or weekend attendance or an online store with the next greatest "resource" that shows how to build a great life empire, just like me. Let's all get together and talk about how the way we do things is the right way. And while we're there, let's cloak our questions so it's not so blatant that we're really just comparing numbers and size. Preoccupation with luxurious living, comfort and leisure... check. While we're there at the conference or denominational gathering comparing and secretly resenting others' "success", why don't we just pull down our pants and play the "which youth room is cooler" or "which sanctuary has the newer fancier HD projectors instead of the old kind" game. Because isn't that the measure of success for all Americans? Having nice things and lots of them.
Ignoring the poor and oppressed and disregarding their needs... check. It seems that our definition of success is mainly found in the things listed above. The accumulation of stuff and the building of empires when God's definition of success is caring for the widow, the orphan, and the poor. How much of our "programming" is geared to blessing the poor, needy, and oppressed? Very little, if at all. It's not on most churches' radar and it's not on most our personal radars either. It's all about me.
And while I realize the tone of this post has been much more about tearing down than building up, I must say that I'm having a hard time stomaching it all really and this is just my rant. If I'm honest, the root of all of this frustration is that I don't quite know what to do with these three detestable things inside me. The arrogance, the preoccupation of having a bunch of nice things, and the disregard for those hurting and in need all around me.Â
While I'm thankful for the country and churches I've grown up in, we are way "East of Eden" and I'm not sure how we get back. This system of anti-Kingdom has invaded my soul and I feel like a man in exile because although I love my church and I love the Church, I've left a lot of the silliness and ideology that it embodies behind but I have nothing to replace it with.Â
My biggest fear is that like the disciples, I'm just looking for another kingdom (see Acts 1:6) to replace it with. The disciples didn't want the kind of Kingdom Jesus was after. They still wanted one with horses and military bases and palaces... they just wanted all these things to be theirs and not the Romans. They spent years with Jesus and they still didn't get it. I wonder if we ever will.
The other night, Patrick and I stopped at a gas station just outside Nashville on our way home from the Montgomery Gentry video shoot. I went inside to grab some snacks for the late night drive home and my interaction with the attendant (we'll call him George) went something Iike this:
George: Is that gonna do it for ya?
Me: Yep. (Pause) Oh, and this Powerbar. Don't know why I kept it in my hand.
George: Do you have cash? Cause you can't pay with a credit or debit card for that.
Me: I can't use my debit card?
George: Not for that. Everything else is fine except for that. It's against the law to pay for it with a credit card.
Me: It's against the law to pay for the Powerbar with my credit card? That's the silliest thing I've ever heard.
George: Where are you from, son?
Me: Birmingham. But why does that matter?
George: Well, up here it's illegal to pay for that with a credit or debit card.
Me: That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Why in the world would that be illegal?
George: Well, they probably don't want people running up debt by coming in here buying a bunch of them all at the same time.
Me: That's hilarious! Stupidest law I've ever heard of in my life. I can't believe it's illegal in Tennessee to pay for a Powerbar with my credit or debit card no matter how many I want to buy at one time. I should be able to buy as many as I want even if in this case it only happens to be one.
George: Did you say "Powerbar?"Â I thought you said "PowerBall."
Funny how one small misunderstood word can change an entire conversation. Communication would be much more effective if we would just back up and clarify what we said instead of expecting the other person to just magically understand where we're coming from.
He is jealous for me, Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree, Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy. When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory, And I realise just how beautiful You are, And how great Your affections are for me.
And oh, how He loves us so, Oh how He loves us, How He loves us all
We are His portion and He is our prize, Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes, If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking.
So Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss, And my heart turns violently inside of my chest, I don’t have time to maintain these regrets, When I think about, the way…
At the end of an interview for a series we [Christ City Church in Memphis] were doing at The Journey, my good friend Aaron turned to me and said, "I'd like to say something about Christians trying to convert non-Christians."
I was chatting with a friend on iChat earlier this morning and I wanted to recognize this important day but somehow "Happy Good Friday" just seemed inappropriate so I settled on a rather weak and cliche "God bless you and your family today."Â It's the best I could come up but I meant it knowing today should be a day of sober reflection for every follower of Christ.
Even the name "Good Friday" is paradoxical. It's a good day for us but it wasn't so good for him.
But I also find that Jesus' final words carry a bit of paradox that a lot of people can relate to and resonate with. I know he was fufilling prophesy but it doesn't diminish what I believe Jesus was really feeling in that moment and was honest enough to come right out with it...
Matthew 27:45-46: From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi,lama sabachthani?"—which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
Have you ever felt this way? Ever felt like Almighty God was letting you down? Ever wondered, "What in the world are You waiting for? Step in and DO SOMETHING!"
I know I have. But, I love how God in his wonderful grace and mercy has placed things in his Word so human and so raw. It's not the glossed over Gospel that is often times presented today. It's real. It's gritty. It's to be wrestled with and grappled with.
The Beautiful Paradox of Good Friday and the Final Words of Jesus can be seen in his follow up to this incredible feeling of despair...
Luke 23:44-46: It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last.
The same God who Jesus felt had left him out to dry, was the same God he committed his life to... committed his spirit to... committed his pain to... committed his trust to.
Jesus is our perfect example. He's the essence of beauty and life. So...
May you, on this day, even though you feel forsaken and torn and broken and bruised... even by God himself... turn to Him because he's good. He's loving. He's faithful.
A good friend and I were talking yesterday about life and the future. I've been wrestling with the whole concept of a life of significance and it was just good to have a sounding board. It's so easy to internalize everything and we're usually not quick to engage others with all that we're processing.
A lot of times, I think our whole concept of significance comes more from our Westernized American culture than a true biblical understanding of worth. Big is almost always better. Well-known almost always means respect.
But what if our filter was turned on its ear? What if contentment and surrender ruled the day? What if we surrendered our concept of significance and a life of meaning to God? What if the striving and busyness and hyper-activity gave way to "If the Lord allows me...?"
I love the letter John Piper recently wrote to his church on his blog, Desiring God. I think his move is a beautiful example of right priorities and definitely worth the read.
So, I'm climbing a mountain this July. For all the details and a great opportunity to doing something special, please visit www.ClimbForTheKids.org. As for this post on DNSLNS, I'm gonna rant a little bit about why.
It's not like I set out to climb Mount Rainier. In fact, it wasn't even my idea. It was my friend Adam's idea. We were talking about "bucket list" stuff and he mentioned it. So I said, "why not do something we want to do and try and make a difference as well?" And that's how ClimbForTheKids came about.
But deep inside, for me, there's something more. Here are some reasons (in random order), I'm climbing Mount Rainier:
Jesus is all about the orphans and suffering and it's time we take those teachings a little more seriously
I want to extend compassion in Jesus' name instead of just playing politics and all the church silliness that's done in His name every week
Children are important
Children are close to the heart of God
I tried saving the world once and it almost cost me my marriage. This time around, I'm just trying to do my part however small it may be
I think we can do so much more together than we can by ourselves
I think Josiah would dig that I'm climbing a real mountain
Maria thinks it's hot and Ben thinks it's cool
My sons inspire me to be more giving
Jesus never calls us to remove suffering. He calls us to ease it and get in there with others even especially when it hurts
The Church should be doing more than the world in extending generosity and compassion to the hurting
I like the challenge of setting a big goal and working towards it
It gives me a solid reason to get healthy
We've always been a giving family and although not wealthy (by most standards we are extremely wealthy) we've been blessed to give. But, I find myself giving more and more "smaller" donations believing that our giving coupled with others can make a huge impact.
So, please don't wait until you feel you can write the big check. Do something... now. It doesn't have to be ClimbForTheKids (although we'd welcome it) but it does need to be something. Find what resonates with you and don't ignore it. It's probably the thing you're supposed to do.
Weeks ago I got an email from my good friend, Big Norm, over in Ireland across the pond. Basically, it said... I miss DNSLNS and you need to start blogging again... "I know you have it in you," he says.
For whatever reason I've remained silent for months. Call it busy life... call it lack of energy... call it why-bother-no-one-reads-this-silly-thing-anyway... but here I am and (again) for whatever reason, I felt compelled to come to my keyboard and type.
Tonight, I was lying in bed and was reminded of a song that played in a small youth room in Los Angeles, California. I was a youth pastor and striving to "make a difference." I wanted so badly to "reach" people that somehow (and this happens a lot with leaders) I had missed the simple truth that I am loved by God no matter what.
I think it's easy for all of us to lose this incredible concept along the way. We get caught up in all the "Christian" and "church" stuff which basically translates into what we should and shouldn't be doing. Anyway, I'm there in our youth room and this song begins to play...
I'm your beloved Your creation And you love me just as I am You have called me chosen For your people Not ashamed to call me your own I am your beloved
A good friend put it on repeat and I remember lying there face down, crying like a baby. I cried so hard, in fact, I had two black eyes from popping all the little blood vessels around my eyes. Have you ever cried that hard before?
Even though I grew up in the church, I never fully knew that He loves me no matter how much or how little I accomplished... No. Matter. What.
Doesn't matter how big the youth group gets. Doesn't matter if I get on the board. Doesn't matter if you think I'm a loser. Doesn't matter if I make it to the top of Mount Rainier. Doesn't matter if we raise a lot of money. Doesn't matter.
With many many failures and quite a few successes (BTW, our failures don't ruin our successes), I'm reminded ever so randomly of this amazing truth. Because for me, all my insecurity and dysfunction comes from straying from the simple fact that in some miraculous way, Almighty God loves me. No. Matter. What.
And so, here I am, twelve years later and there's a sense of contentment and satisfaction I've never known or experienced. I don't know all that God does. I certainly don't know how he does it. He's more of a mystery to me than ever before. As matter of fact, I still have a hard time talking and walking with him after losing Josiah.
But you can take this to the bank and you can count on it with your life... He's a good God. And, He's full of grace. And, He's patient. And, He loves me.
One of my major premises in the writing I’m doing these days is that evangelicals have become a movement actually destroying itself.
At no point does that seem more obvious than in the recent evolution of worship within evangelicalism.
Does anyone- I mean, really, seriously- have any idea what is actually happening within the worship culture of evangelicals?
We have, within a matter of 50 years, completely changed the entire concept of what is a worship service. We’ve adopted an approach that demands ridiculous levels of musical, technical and financial commitment and resources.
We have tied ourselves to the Christian music industry and its endless appetite for change and profit. We have accepted that all of our worship leaders are going to be very, very young people. Traditional worship - a la Tenth Presbyterian in Philly- is on the verge of becoming a museum piece.
The reformed- of all people- have led the way in this revolution. I attended a seminar last week where a room full of reformed were instructed in why the optimum worship leadership option was “the band.” Not the choir, the worship team, etc. But “the band.” Does anyone realize what that means for public worship?
Diversity, generational compatibility, even simplicity are all being blown up. Worship is now a major audience event, led by skilled entertainers, aimed at a demographic and judged by the audience reaction.
God? God has been moved around to be things like a reluctant Spirit we sing down with our songs or a divine innovator always blessing as much radical change as possible.
Why do I call this a goof? Because there is no way for this to end well. This is like a NASCAR car with the throttle stuck open. We’re stuck on a roller coaster and we can’t get off.
Worship has now become a musical term. Praise and worship means music. Let’s worship means the band will play. We need to give more time to worship doesn’t mean silent prayer or public scripture reading or any kind of participatory liturgy. It means music.
Even singing is getting lost in this. As the volume and the performance level goes up, who knows who is singing?
And who can stand for 20, 30 or 40 minutes?
We have a lot of happy people right now. They have no idea what Biblical worship is outside of the context of their favorite songs played by a kickin’ band. They have little idea of worship in vocation, in family, in ordinary work or in silence. They credit their favorite songs as major spiritual events.
We have goofed up. Simple, plain liturgy. Diversity and inclusion. Appreciation and full Biblical understanding. Cross generational intentionality and suspicion of the profit motive. Renouncing the spirit of competition. Hearing the prophetic warnings about God’s disgust with much of Israel’s “big show” worship culture. We need all of this.
We need Jesus shaped worship, and we need worship that promotes a simple, direct, uncompromising Jesus shaped spirituality.
