Click on image to go to Video Teaching

I learned about this new website from www.churchcrunch.com.

It looks like it is offering free video sermons from some of the best preachers in North America to any church anywhere.

Cool!  . . . and at the same time . . .

“Wait. What does this mean for the future of preaching?”

Any one can already listen to the most popular preachers on the radio, TV, the Internet etc.  But, now churches will be able to fill their pulpits with these sermons.   Many churches are already doing similar things when they open satellite campuses where all the different locations are watching and listening to the same preacher via video or satellite.  So, this is really not all THAT new.

Yet, it DOES accentuate a problem in the local church setting.  Chances are that you church does not have one of the best preachers in America.  Most preachers are not amazing preachers.  Some are bad, some are good.  But few can compare to the popular ones.

Since we can hear the best sermons online or on radio, we probably are not going to church on Sunday to hear a good sermon, are we?  Are you?  We can stay home and hear amazing sermons, can’t we?

MY QUESTIONS . . .

Let me ask:

1) Why DO you go to church (if you do)?

2) And, would you mind (or prefer) if your church used video sermons from some of the best preachers in the country?

Skye Jethani’s new book Divine Commodity explores how consumerism has impacted our understanding of church, worship, mission, community, and God. He also offers insights into how we can overcome the influence of “Consumer Christianity” and awaken our imaginations through practicing private and corporate spiritual disciplines.

In keeping with that theme, Out of Ur is sponsoring a contest to see whether Urbanites can spot Consumer Christianity when they see it.

You can read a sample of the book here!!

See the sidebar for a short interview with Skye about consumerism and the North American church.  (The sidebar is over there. ) → → → →

So, here is my definition for the contest.  I have already purchased the book and am waiting for it to be delivered from Amazon.  So, if I win I can pass the book on to someone else – maybe one of you!!

In “Something Beautiful”, Sinead O’ Connor sings:

Oh I wanna make something
So lovely for you
‘Cus I promised that’s what I’d do for you
With the bible I stole
I know you forgave my soul
Because such was my need on a chronic Christmas Eve
And I think we’re agreed that it should have been free
And you sang to me

So, what do you think?  I know that many of you will have better definitions of consumer Christianity that I, so why don’t you enter the contest as well?  And, if you feel free, let us know what your definition is!

Thomas O’Dea wrote, “Five Dilemmas in the Institutionalization of Religion” in 1961.  Here is a link to the original article. I first learned about this article through the insightful and briliant book, Rejesus: A Wild Messiah For A Missional Church by Alan Hirsch and Michael Frost.

This is what Hirsch and Frost say on page 69 of the book:

“What happens in the beginning of a movement is that the people encounter the divine in a profound and revelatory way, but with successive generations this encounter tends to fade like a photocopy of a photocopy of a photocopy.  What begins as a revolutionary, life-transforming, confrontation with Jesus eventually subsides into a codified religion and is subsequently incorporated into normal social life.”

They describe the irresolvable dilemma in this way:

“Although genuine faith is born out of direct encounters with God, it cannot survive and prosper without some form of stability and order. Viewed positively, rituals, creeds, and organizations can help people structure their relationship with God.  In fact, we believe this is what they were initially designed for.  But unless the worshipper is very wary, the glory of the God encounter will slowly fade and the ritual, creeds, and rules intended to preserve the encounter will take its place.”

Thomas O’Dea, in the article linked to above, points out how consecutive generations tend to construct religious systems to take the place of the original encounter.  Thus, the “crisis inevitably dawns when the outward forms of worship no longer match the inward experience and spiritual condition of the participants.  Decline becomes inevitable.  Authentic Christianity is subverted and constant renewals become necessary.”  (Hirsch and Frost, 77).

So what are these five dilemmas the Thomas O’Dea wrote about?  I have summarized them below.  If you look at the original article, you will see why a summary is helpful!

1. THE DILEMMA OF MIXED MOTIVATION

In the beginning, in what O’Dea calls the “pre-institutionalized stage” of a religious movement, the disciples are gathered around a charismatic leader and there is only one single motivation.  When the movement is stabilized with an institutional matrix, new kinds of motivation arise – needs for prestige, leadership, power, and respect. An example from the New Testament is seen where we read the disciples becoming concerned with who shall be the highest in the kingdom.

Institutions can mobilize all these different kinds of motivation but selection and promotion within the organization must reflect the functional needs of the organization and therefore will not distinguish between the different motivations.  The self-interested motivation may prevail leading to its corruption.  Mixed motivation is not unique to leadership but changes the composition of its members.  With the passing of the founding generation, the religious body now contains people who have not had the original conversion experience.  “The selection process which voluntary conversion represented often kept out of the organization precisely the kinds of persons who are now brought up within it.”

2. THE SYMBOLIC DILEMMA: OBJECTIFICATION VERSUS ALIENATION

Our response to the holy is expressed not only in community, but also in worship.  However, in order to survive its charismatic moment, worship must become stabilized in established forms.  Thus, ritual develops forcing to conform our interior disposition to this symbolic order.  So, worship becomes an objective reality that imposes its own patterns upon the participants.

And yet, this “objectification” is necessary for common worship for without it prayer would be individual, not communal.  The ritualization which makes it possible to worship in community can become so routinized that it becomes cut off from the experience of the participants.  Thus, we have alienation.   (I wonder if this is what I see in contemporary church services when participants are text messaging or talking on their cell phones while the worship band plays on.)

“To symbolize the transcendent is to take the inevitable risk of losing the contact with it.  To embody the sacred in a vehicle is to run the risk of its secularization.  Yet if religious life is to be shared and transmitted down the generations the attempt must be made.”  The medium of genuine communication becomes a barrier and an object of aggression. (Could this be the basis for the “worship wars”, the denomination rifts, or the strong feelings invoked by some by the words, Emergent, Charismatic, Evangelical, or Institutional Church?)

3. THE DILEMMA OF ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER

Charismatic leadership quickly changes into a traditional structure consisting of a chief and an administrative staff.  Precedents are established, new offices and roles are formed, new communication protocols and soon the structure is in danger of complicating itself.  “The tendency or organization to complicate itself to meet new situations often transforms it into an awkward and confusing mechanism within whose context is it difficult to accomplish anything.”

4. THE DILEMMA OF DELIMITATION: CONCRETE DEFINITION VERSUS SUBSTITUTION OF LETTER FOR SPIRIT

In order to have an impact on our lives, religious insights must be translated into terms relevant for everyday life.  These terms, however elaborate, or however gifted the communicator maybe be, can’t make explicit all that is implied in the original insight or experience.  A similar thing happens when you try to explain a dream or a wonderful experience to someone.  Your words can never fully encapsulate your original experience.  And yet we must try or the experience will be lost by others.  The risk is that it may end up being reduced too much which would lead to a deadening legalism.

5. THE DILEMMA OF POWER: CONVERSION VERSUS COERCION

The propagation of Christianity involves an interior “change” or “conversion”.  This decision is the beginning of the religious life for the individual.  “With institutionalization of the religious movement, such a conversion may be replace by the socialization of the young so that a slow process of education and training substitutes for the more dramatic experience.”  Of course, this kind of socialization often paves the way for conversion.   Since religion depends on this interior disposition of the individuals who are vulnerable to outside influences, there is a temptation to use the close relation or similarities between religion and societal values to reinforce the religion.  The organization, in its search for power, is often co-opted by the very forces it seeks to control.

Those are the five dilemmas written about in the article, “Five Dilemmas in the Institutionalization of Religion”.  The article takes a long time to wade through so I hope it benefits you to have my brief synopsis here.  I searched for a summary but couldn’t find one so hopefully this one will suffice for now.  If, after reading the article, you have something to add or can word it better than I, let me know and I would be glad to include it here!

Again, comments are always welcome and not moderated.

photo by Doug Robertson

I read this article by A. W. Tozer in an Alliance Life magazine many years ago and used it on several occasions in my own spiritual journey.  It was usually a beneficial experience for me.  That was a long time ago, and my faith and my relationship with God has changed a lot since then.   This is a good thing.  Changes in how I see God and interact with him are signs of growth.  I think it would be unhealthy if nothing had changed.

So, as I look at this article now I have mixed feelings.  Where I once wholeheartedly agreed with Tozer and this method/”how to” approach to personal revival, I now have second thoughts about the approach.  Now, as I read this, I hear, “Do this. Don’t do that. You must. You should. You have to if you want to be more spiritual and have a better relationship with God.” But,  . . .  then . . . I hesitate to be so critical . . .  because I do remember having wonderful experiences with God as a result of following these steps.  I never want to give the impression to anyone that they need to be doing more, or that God would love them more if they do certain things.

So, I hesitate . . . I hesitate to be critical of this approach and I hesitate to encourage others to follow these steps.  Yet, here I am posting it here.  After reading the following article, I would love your input.  Does this smell of religion to you?  Religious works? Or, is this positive?  Something we should encourage?

I have previously said that any Christian who desires to, may experience a radical spiritual renascence, and this altogether independent of the attitude of his fellow Christians. The important question now is How? Well, here are some suggestions which anyone can follow and which, I am convinced, will result in a wonderfully improved Christian life.

1. Get Thoroughly Dissatisfied with Yourself.
Complacency is the deadly enemy of spiritual progress. The contented soul is the stagnant soul. When speaking of earthly goods, Paul could say, “ I have learned … to be content”; but when referring to his spiritual life, he testified, “I press toward the mark.” Stir up the gift of God that is in thee.

2. Set Your Face Like a Flint Toward a Sweeping Transformation of Your Life.
Timid experimenters are tagged for failure before they start. We must throw our whole soul into our desire for God. “The Kingdom of God suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force.”

3. Put Yourself in the Way of the Blessing.
It is a mistake to look for grace to visit us as a kind of benign magic, or to expect God’s help to come as a windfall apart from conditions known and met. There are plainly marked paths which lead straight to the green pastures; let us walk in them. To desire revival, for instance, and at the same time to neglect prayer and devotion is to wish one way and walk another.

4. Do a Thorough Job of Repenting.
Do not hurry to get it over with. Hasty repentance means shallow spiritual experience and lack of certainty in the whole life. Let godly sorrow do her healing work. Until we allow the consciousness of sin to wound us, we will never develop a fear of evil. It is our wretched habit of tolerating sin that keeps us in our half-dead condition.

5. Make Restitution Wherever Possible.
If you owe a debt, pay it, or at least have a frank understanding with your creditor about your intentions to pay, so that your honesty will be above question. If you have quarreled with anyone, go as far as you can in an effort to achieve reconciliation. As fully as possible make the crooked things straight.

6. Bring Your Life Into Accord With the Sermon on the Mount and Such Other New Testament Scriptures as are Designed to Instruct Us in the Way of Righteousness.
An honest man with an open Bible and a pad and pencil is sure to find out what is wrong with him very quickly. I recommend that the self-examination be made on our knees, rising to obey God’s commandments as they are revealed to us from the Word. There is nothing romantic or colorful about this plain downright way of dealing with ourselves, but it gets the work done. Issac’s workmen did not look like heroic figures as they digged in the valley, but they got the wells open, and that was what they had set out to do.

7. Be Serious–minded.
You can well afford to see fewer comedy shows on TV. Unless you break away from the funny boys, every spiritual impression will continue to be lost to your heart, and that right in your own living room. The people of the world used to go to the movies to escape serious thinking about God and religion. You would not join them there, but you now enjoy spiritual communion with them in your own home._The devils ideals, moral standards, and mental attitudes are being accepted by you without you knowing it. You wonder why you can make no progress in your Christian life. Your interior climate is not favorable to the growth of spiritual graces. There must be a radical change in your habits or there will not be any permanent improvement in your interior life.

8. Deliberately Narrow Your Interests.
The Jack-of-all-trades is the master of none. The Christian life requires that we be specialists. Too many projects use up time and energy without bringing us nearer to God. If you will narrow your interests, God will enlarge your heart.

“Jesus only” seems to the unconverted man to be the motto of death. But a great company of happy men and women can testify that it became to them a way into a world infinitely wider and richer than anything they had ever known before.

Christ is the essence of all wisdom, beauty and virtue. To know Him in growing intimacy is to increase in appreciation of all things good and beautiful. The mansions of the heart will become larger when their doors are thrown open to Christ and closed against the world and sin. Try it.

9. Begin to Witness.
Find something to do for God and your fellow men. Refuse to rust out. Make yourself available to your pastor and do anything you are asked to do. Do not insist upon a place of leadership. Learn to obey. Take the low place until such time as God sees fit to set you in a higher one. Back your new intentions with your money and your gifts, such as they are.

10. Have Faith in God.
Begin to expect. Look up toward the throne where your Advocate sits at the right hand of God. All heaven is on your side. God will not disappoint you.

If you will follow these suggestions, you will most surely experience revival in your own heart. And who can tell how far it may spread? God knows how desperately the church needs a spiritual resurrection. And it can only come through the revived individual.

So, there it is!  Again I would really love to hear what you think.  Seriously Leave a comment if you have any thoughts.

photo by Doug Robertson

I often dream that I am tagging along behind Jesus, longing for him to choose me as one of his disciples.  Without warning, he turns around, looks straight into my eyes, and says, “Follow me!“  My heart races, and I begin to run toward him when he interrupts with, “Oh, not you; the guy behind you.  Sorry.“

from Messy Spirituality by Michael Yaconelli

Photo by coda

I came across a great synchroblog happening today and I want to bring your attention to it.   I would love to add my two cents, but I have too much on my plate today to take part.  However, I did notice that several of my friends are taking part.

Lon (Toronto) has posted “10 Thoughts for Starters” at Solar Crash

Here is another one I like.  This is Brian McLaren’s contribution to the conversation.

You can see all the other blogs taking part here.

Also, here is a video from Ooze.tv that I watched just yesterday, “Loving Your Gay Neighbour – Part 1“

And, just found this . . . “Is it actually possible to live a gay lifestyle and follow Christ?” http://drewmarshall.ca/listen2009.html (Look for May 23)

And, totally unrelated . . . it’s my birthday today!  If you want to wish me birthday wished, why don’t you subscribe to this blog.  If I could get even just a few more subscribers, I would have over 40 subscribers and that would be a great birthday present!

See the sidebar for subscription links!

Photo by anitacanita

My family is going through a transition and this summer will prove to be an eventful one.  My 5 year old daughter is having surgery in July to fix a kidney reflux problem.  A few weeks ago, we found out that we will not be going back to Japan as expected, so we are now looking for work.  Most of our belongings are in storage in a warehouse in Japan, so we are trying to figure out a way to get at least some of that stuff back here.  We need to move out of this place we are renting at the end of July because it has been sold.  And, yesterday, I was supposed to donate a kidney to my wife’s brother.  But, it didn’t happen because less than two weeks ago, I found out that I have a heart condition called SVT and so the plans to donate a kidney were called off.  The heart condition I have can be fixed (I think the cardiologist said 80% success rate), so that is good news and I am just waiting for a phone call to let me know when my heart surgery will be.

The week before we found out that we would NOT be going back to Japan, I was asked to give a “charge” to a young family that was heading out to Peru for the summer and possibly in to full-time mission work overseas.  This little “speech” I gave has now taken on new meaning for me and as I read it now, I read it as if I am preaching to myself.

Scene:
Carter looks over and sees Edward reading the sheet of paper. Carter asks Edward, “What are you doing?” Edward wants to know what the list on the paper means, but Carter insists on Edward giving it back to him. Edward smiles and says, “It was on the floor. I didn’t know it was a state secret.”

Carter relaxes and explains that when he was in college his freshmen philosophy professor “assigned this exercise in forward thinking. He called it ‘the Bucket List.’ We were supposed to make a list of all of the things we wanted to do in our lives before we…” Edward, figuring it out, finishes the sentence, “kick the bucket. Cutesy.”

Carter explains the kind of things he had initially written on his list, “make a million dollars, the first black president, you know, young man’s wishes…”

Edward begins to read aloud from Carter’s new list, “Help a complete stranger for the good. Laugh until I cry. Not to be judgmental, but this is extremely weak.”

Carter is resigned to his fate, saying, “It’s pointless now.” But Edward says, “I would argue the complete opposite.”

Edward takes the sheet of paper and begins to write on it. When Carter asks what he is doing, Edward replies, “A little rewrite, that’s all.”

If you’ve seen this movie, then you are familiar with the story:

Edward Cole and Carter Chambers have almost nothing in common. Edward is rich, lives lavishly, and is alone. Carter is middle-class, lives simply, and is surrounded by a loving family. The one thing that Edward and Carter have in common is that they both are dying of terminal cancer. Instead of quietly fading away, the two men draw up a “bucket list” — a list of things they want to do before they kick the bucket.

So let me ask you, “Do you have a bucket list? What are some of the things on your list?”

I know you, and so I know that on the list will be some things you want to do, not for yourself, but for God before you die.

I want to encourage you to ask yourself a question that only you can answer. Why?  Why do you want to do the things you want to do?  Why do you want to start new churches and put energy into God’s kingdom?  Take some time to answer these questions.  No matter what you do or don’t do, you know that God loves you.  He will not love you more because you do great things or because you are a missionary or a pastor. God loves you now just as you are as much as He ever will.  And God does not care about what is on YOUR bucket list.  You may not get to do all the things on your bucket list even if they are things you want to do for God. God may not let you do them.  And then, how will you react?  How will you act when you cannot accomplish all that you want to accomplish?

If you don’t get to do all of the things on your list, is that OK?  What if you don’t end up doing any of the things on your list?  Will become a grumpy old man, will you become discouraged or disgruntled with God and dissatisfied with your life with a list of things that you are still trying to accomplish before your life ends?

It is good to have a bucket list.  What matters is how you react when God does not allow you to do some of the things on your list, even if they are things you want to do for Him.

In fact, you may not even get to do any of those things.

And this leads me to my word of advice: Remain faithful. Let me clarify what I mean by “faithful” by saying what I don’t mean.  I don’t mean your belief in God.  I don’t mean trusting in God for your salvation.  When I say to remain faithful, I mean faithful in the sense of being full of hope.  Hope in God.  Hope.  Hope that God is moving and working even when you don’t see it.  Hope because God is God and he is great!

Make that a priority that underlies all of your desires and work for God – to remain full of hope in God right to the end no matter what happens.   Unless you are the exception to the norm, your life will not happen exactly as you expected.  When that happens will you still remain hopeful?

photo by kmevans

@FrankViola posted this joke awhile ago.  Very smart!  Enjoy the weekend!

A Canadian couple decided to go to Florida to thaw out during a particularly icy winter. They planned to stay at the same hotel where they spent their honeymoon 20 years earlier. Because of hectic schedules, it was difficult to coordinate their travel schedules. So, the husband left Toronto and flew to Florida on Thursday, with his wife flying down the following day.

The husband checked into the hotel. There was a computer in his room. He decided to send an email to his wife. However, he accidentally left out one letter in her email address, and without realizing his error, he sent the email.

Meanwhile, somewhere in Houston, a widow had just returned home from her husband’s funeral. He was a minister who was called home to glory following a heart attack. The widow decided to check her email expecting messages from family and friends. After reading the first message, she screamed and fainted. The widow’s son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor passed out. He looked at the computer which read:

To: My Loving Wife
Subject: I’ve Arrived
Date: June 21, 2009

I know you’re surprised to hear from me. They have computers here now and you are allowed to send emails to your loved ones. I’ve just arrived and have been checked in. I’ve seen that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you then!!!! Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was.

P.S. Sure is freaking hot down here!!!!

A friend has lent me this book and I am enjoying it so far.   The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community

I like that the authors are not negative toward certain forms of church; I like that the model they are promoting is something that can be used in house churches, small groups, or even mega-churches; I like that they give me practical steps on how to accomplish the kind of community I long for; and, I like that they make me feel hopeful!

It’s not about attracting Christian people to a worship service.  The goal is to be the faithful church in small pockets throughout the city – places of inclusive belonging where God’s alternative Kingdom can be experienced.

Look inside the book here to get a feel for what I am talking about.

The following is from the website, http://www.tangiblekingdom.com:

Jesus’ news about His Kingdom is a wild, life-reorienting message. It changes people, cities, and the social fabric. It looks quite different from the religion common to some of our present-day church experiences.

Watch as a normal God-searching man finds hope as he sees a glimpse of the Kingdom in a community of friends, around a table, and everywhere he goes.

The Tangible Kingdom helps open a window into the uneasiness many of us feel when what we’ve read in Scripture does not line up with our experiences of church or religion.

Photo: Brian Guest

As we all know, many people are not satisfied with their own church experiences and the number only seems to be growing.  Those of us with the palms of our hands on the railroad track feel the vibrations of new paradigms of church approaching. (just had a flashback to the movie Stand By Me )

Wolfgang Simson talks about the steps of migrating from the old paradigm to the new one.  In his talk, he assumes that the new paradigm to which people are moving is the house church paradigm.  While I do resonate with much of the house church movement, I hesitate to assume that it will be the only new paradigm of church that will flourish in the following generations.  (NOTE: I misunderstood Wolfgang here.  Please note his response below in the comment section.) However, I do agree that we are in desperate need of new paradigms for church expressions.  Here is the diagram the Wolfgang uses to portray the steps people take in adopting a new church paradigm.

(Click on the image to go to the original article.)

Point – 2: This is where most Christians are today as this new move of God unfolds. This is the point of “happy clappy” churchianity where most people are content with where they are in their church experience. When you talk to them about the need for a new paradigm their response is basically, “I have no idea what you are talking about.”
Point – 1: This second point or step in apostolic migration represents people who are no longer satisfied with “happy clappy church” as they have known it. These are people who have heard from God about more authentic expressions of church. They have begun to move in their spirits, but their bodies and their money have not yet moved. They are frustrated pilgrims. Some will move to the next step, while others will not.
Point 0: This third step represents frustrated pilgrims who have finally left the old paradigm and are now “out of the system,” but they do not yet know that there is a new paradigm to move into. And there is a reason for this. God knows that it is easier to get a person “out of the system” than it is to get the old system out of the person. For this reason God engineers the wilderness as a place of to the old, a place of “religious detoxification” where God deals with our “baggage.” It is in the wilderness that God seeks to heal our hurts, wounds, bitterness, anger and other personal “baggage” left over from our journey out of the old. Not everyone “survives” the wilderness experience to emerge healthy at the next Point. Some people are unable to “let go” of the past (past wounds, hurts, betrayals, etc.) in order to embrace God’s future plans.
Point + 1: This is the stage or point at which people choose to leave the past and the wilderness behind and to “cross over the ” into the new paradigm of what God is doing. This requires both a leaving (of the old) and a cleaving (to the new). It requires us to “uncovenant” with what has gone before, and to make a new covenant with God’s new unfolding paradigm. It is often at this point that a person’s commitment or lack of commitment to the new paradigm is revealed through statements like, “You mean I must do house church exclusively?” Such a response reveals that the person hasn’t yet caught the vision of God’s new paradigm and is still trying to “straddle” both worlds (the old versus the new). It means they aren’t quite ready to emerge from the wilderness because they haven’t yet fully died to themselves and to the old.
Point + 2: Welcome to the new paradigm that God is raising up in our day. At this point you have died to yourself and the past and have embraced the new thing God is doing. Your work isn’t over. In fact, it’s just beginning.

Where are you on the continuum of migration?  Which of these 5 points do you most resonate with?