I had a conversation with my wife last night that took me by surprise, although it's not the first time in our marriage we had talked about it. I don't think Elizabeth had ever even thought about being a minister's wife before we started dating, and it was a big issue we had to walk through before we were married. She was totally supportive of my calling to ministry and excited to be involved in it with me, but thoughts about people's expectations of ministers and their families were sobering for her (and probably should have been more sobering for me). With the launch of Church @ the Springs, the idea of being a "pastor's wife" brought those feelings back again, and it's been a topic of discussion around the house lately.
Truth be told, I never really wanted to be a pastor (as I saw the role). A friend who has known me for a long time and understands this about me recently told me that some of the best leaders were dragged into leadership reluctantly--I hope he's right, because I certainly was. I have no doubts that God led me into ministry, but I started out in student ministry because it was the only place in the church I thought I wouldn't be fired, and got involved in music only when the music landscape of the church started to change. For most of my ministry career I've steered clear of the "pastoral" positions. I was close enough to see those jobs behind the scenes as well as in front, and I wanted no part of them. I didn't dislike spiritual leadership, teaching, or caring for people. It was the "clergy" label and function of the pastors as a priestly class that bothered me most: the public persona, the pressure to present oneself and one's family as the epitome of Christian-ness, the expectation to function as a kind of civic personality--like a mayor with a seminary degree. I knew I couldn't stand up to that pressure. I didn't have the wardrobe. I wasn't enamored enough with wielding spiritual authority to be willing to put up with the junk that came with it. I once heard a pastor say that the way most churches function pushes the pastor to one extreme or the other: you become a doormat, constantly trying to fulfill the expectations of a group of people who themselves can't agree about what you should be doing; or you become a tyrant, holding enough power to render meaningless whatever decision-making process the church may have adopted. I've known both types of pastors and churches, and I'm wary of them. But I also know churches and pastors that are none of those things, and hope to emulate them and learn from them.
The role of clergy, as it has been broadly defined by our culture, attracts people to it for some really unhealthy reasons, as we've all become painfully aware over the years. Spiritual authority can be intoxicating, and the chemical reaction between it and an unhealthy need to control other people is usually violent and destructive. It's a well-known truth among pastors: "the pulpit is the best place in the church to hide." Who else has the pastor's opportunity to create a public persona that may or may not be the true self? Who else can promote accountability and personal transparency and deftly avoid them at the same time? And this is not just a matter of pastors manipulating innocent sheep. Parishioners and even church boards often want their pastors to be larger than life, to present an air of success or even wealth. Others expect their pastors to visit the sick, bury the dead, perform weddings, bless babies, baptize the converted, visit prospects, care for the hurting, counsel the troubled, manage the church's business, raise money, have a perfect life and family, and bring an A+ sermon every Sunday--in short, to be the whole church in one individual. No thanks! Many church members would be discouraged to discover that their pastor is just a human being like themselves. Surely he has some kind of special access to God; surely he is anointed, called, set apart...right?
In the New Testament church, there is little doubt that the Apostles were looked upon with a sense of awe. They were eye-witnesses to Jesus' life, death, and resurrection, and had been personally charged by Jesus with the task of making disciples throughout the world. The Holy Spirit had come upon them and empowered their lives in dramatic ways. Nonetheless, they weren't usually viewed as a priestly class, and they certainly did not view themselves as such; they were still "of the people," like Jesus himself had been. In fact, the existing priestly class seemed always to be surprised that these very un-priestly people had such spiritual impact. They had no formal religious training; they had merely lived with Jesus for three years. In fact, Peter himself refers to all Christians as a priesthood in 1 Peter 2:9 (how ironic that Peter, the purported first Pope, would have been the one to pen those words).
I believe God equips and calls people to spiritual leadership. I believe effective, godly leadership is vital and necessary for the church to accomplish her God-given mission. I believe that leaders are and should be held to a high standard in character and spiritual life. And I believe in the authority of the church's leaders. Jesus did not establish the church as a democracy, and he clearly expects the people of the church to follow the leaders he has equipped and called. But I do not hold Christian leaders on a pedestal above any other gifted men and women. Romans 12 and Ephesians 4 list leadership among other gifts without an asterisk, and in both texts urge unity among people with various gifts. Being a pastor is special, but so is being a helper, a teacher, a generous giver, a servant, a caregiver, and an encourager. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:24 that God has given special honor to the parts of the body that lacked it; since this is true, let's start putting servants in the spotlight and claiming that they have received a special revelation from God. Since what they do is more exceptional than what many of us pastors do, I'm inclined to believe they've heard God in a way the rest of us have not (more on this in a later post).
I think it's time to deconstruct the clergy and just be the people of God instead of the clergy and laity. Where is that in the New Testament? Our community is blessed with some great pastors and church leaders, many of whom I am privileged to call friends. While some may be comfortable with the clergy distinction, most pastors I know dislike being treated so differently most of the time. The "holy man" thing is a lonely life. Don't put that on your pastor or his family. And if the whole church accepts God's calling and mission instead of a few "professionals," the church and the community will be a whole lot better off.
So here I am, just a guy who's pastoring a little church in League City. There is no aura around me when I walk down the street, unless I haven't taken a bath. I hope I hear from God every time I make a decision about church leadership and every time I teach...but I don't have a red phone on my desk dialed into God, and neither do any other pastors I know. We often learn a great deal about Christian living from people without seminary training. I don't wear business suits or clergy collars; don't speak with a Billy Graham accent, on or off the platform; don't have an office, and you won't have a conversation with me while you stare at my credentials on the wall behind my head; you don't have to hide your beer if you see me on the golf course, and I might just have one of those cigars (only the good ones) if the weather has finally turned cold in Houston. I drive a Jeep with big tires, no carpet and holes in the floor so the water will drain out. My kids go to public schools. My wife is fun, and is in fact the best pastor's wife I've ever seen because she's not a 'pastor's wife.' She's a full participant in ministry with me, but she's not running the church behind the scenes. You won't see our family photo on any billboards inviting you to come to church with us--there are a number of other families at the Springs that I would love for you to get to know. I am 'father' to no one, but 'dad' to 2 boys. Neither am I 'reverend.' I'm 'pastor' or 'brother' only if I can call you 'brother' before I say your name--and I'd rather not. I'm just Cameron, and my wife is just Elizabeth, and we count it a privilege to be called to this role in the kingdom of God.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Monday, October 29, 2007
Why We May Never Have a Fall Festival
It's Halloween, and here we are--one of the few churches not offering an alternative activity for kids. We'll be the same church that doesn't have a Super Bowl watching party on our giant screen (we actually have giant screens now!), that won't have a Christmas spectacular, and that won't have a giant Easter egg hunt. If you listen carefully, you can hear the sucking sound as I've just sucked all the fun right out of the church! Some may think so; I hope you're not one of them. Play is one of the 4 primary functions of our church, so I'm certainly not against having a good time (see other blog posts for an explanation of the 4 functions). It's not the activity, but the location we're taking issue with. So withhold judgment for a moment and continue reading....
Regardless of your opinion on Halloween itself, you have to recognize that it is perhaps the single most neighborhood-oriented night of the year. On what other night do your neighbors bring their children to your door to meet you? People you may wave to every week but have never actually met will arrive on your doorstep on Halloween. You can go to their doors and introduce yourself without an excuse or feelings of weirdness (everything's weird on Halloween, right?). The event itself breaks down social barriers that seem to exist every other night of the year. And on this night, of all nights, the church has tended to encourage its members to...leave their neighborhoods and go to the church building. So the most gift-wrapped opportunity of the year to develop relationships in the neighborhood is lost. I understand many people's complaints about Halloween as a holiday; if you are compelled to boycott it or abstain from participation in Halloween for reasons of conscience, I certainly honor that and am not criticizing it. I just believe our best chance for societal change--and changed lives--lies in engaging our neighbors.
We're having a block party in front of our house on Halloween. Several of our neighbors are bringing their candy bowls out to the party, so families who come trick-or-treating can just join our party for a while, and the kids get several houses worth of treats at one stop. We're basically just grilling and hanging out in lawn chairs with our neighbors for the evening. We'll take turns taking the kids around the neighborhood in a little gang to knock on doors. If it goes as I expect, there will be at least one family who discovers us and joins the party unexpectedly--bonus! We'd love to do this on any other night, but Halloween kind of serves it up to us on a platter.
The same principle generally applies to most holidays and community events. We want to strategically engage our community by participating in it as followers of Christ--whenever possible without compromise--rather than separating ourselves from the community to distinguish ourselves as Christians. One large church with a great track record of serving people in need recently "experimented" with the concept of partnering with existing local charities rather than creating their own, separate service project. In addition to the overwhelming success of the project, they discovered that spiritually seeking people in their community had viewed them as uncooperative in the past because they always "did their own thing," and viewed the church in a more favorable light after the event. Sometimes even our most selfless efforts fail to reap the additional kingdom benefit of "enjoying the favor of all the people."
So don't look for a flyer from the Springs about the big Super Bowl party next February. You'll find me watching the Cowboys and the Patriots on my big screen, hopefully with a bunch of guys from my street.
Regardless of your opinion on Halloween itself, you have to recognize that it is perhaps the single most neighborhood-oriented night of the year. On what other night do your neighbors bring their children to your door to meet you? People you may wave to every week but have never actually met will arrive on your doorstep on Halloween. You can go to their doors and introduce yourself without an excuse or feelings of weirdness (everything's weird on Halloween, right?). The event itself breaks down social barriers that seem to exist every other night of the year. And on this night, of all nights, the church has tended to encourage its members to...leave their neighborhoods and go to the church building. So the most gift-wrapped opportunity of the year to develop relationships in the neighborhood is lost. I understand many people's complaints about Halloween as a holiday; if you are compelled to boycott it or abstain from participation in Halloween for reasons of conscience, I certainly honor that and am not criticizing it. I just believe our best chance for societal change--and changed lives--lies in engaging our neighbors.
We're having a block party in front of our house on Halloween. Several of our neighbors are bringing their candy bowls out to the party, so families who come trick-or-treating can just join our party for a while, and the kids get several houses worth of treats at one stop. We're basically just grilling and hanging out in lawn chairs with our neighbors for the evening. We'll take turns taking the kids around the neighborhood in a little gang to knock on doors. If it goes as I expect, there will be at least one family who discovers us and joins the party unexpectedly--bonus! We'd love to do this on any other night, but Halloween kind of serves it up to us on a platter.
The same principle generally applies to most holidays and community events. We want to strategically engage our community by participating in it as followers of Christ--whenever possible without compromise--rather than separating ourselves from the community to distinguish ourselves as Christians. One large church with a great track record of serving people in need recently "experimented" with the concept of partnering with existing local charities rather than creating their own, separate service project. In addition to the overwhelming success of the project, they discovered that spiritually seeking people in their community had viewed them as uncooperative in the past because they always "did their own thing," and viewed the church in a more favorable light after the event. Sometimes even our most selfless efforts fail to reap the additional kingdom benefit of "enjoying the favor of all the people."
So don't look for a flyer from the Springs about the big Super Bowl party next February. You'll find me watching the Cowboys and the Patriots on my big screen, hopefully with a bunch of guys from my street.
Houston, we have liftoff...
The last few seconds ticked off of the countdown clock and the space shuttle lifted from the launch pad...on our video screens yesterday, as the first Sunday service of Church @ the Springs began. It was an incredible experience from start to finish: from the text messages and emails I received from friends all over the country who were up early praying for us; to the surprise appearances of friends and other church leaders who showed up at our service; to the heroic service of our launch team; to the experience of thanking God and dedicating our church to Him and His purposes.
It may have been a stretch to compare our small beginning to the launch of the space shuttle. There was a lot less fanfare (at least on earth). We were excited to have over 100 in attendance on our first day. There was no media coverage. The truth is, most people in our community don't even know we exist (yet). But there are two ways I think it's worthy of the space shuttle comparison. The first is the boldness and pioneering spirit of our launch team. It still amazes me that this little band of Christ-followers has jumped into this thing the way they have, given sacrificially of themselves and their resources, and valued each other. The second is the reality that, like the shuttle, most of the energy is expended just to get off the ground. At some point in the future of the Springs, we'll break free from the gravitational pull of smallness, lack of resources, lack of exposure in the community, lack of this and that. People who come along in the future will not be in touch with the enormous effort put forth by the launch team and other partners in this ministry, just like people don't remember the giant fuel tanks and booster rockets that fall off of the shuttle just moments after launch. It's not a glamorous job, but you don't fly without them. I thank God these days that I find myself surrounded by booster rocket people.
It may have been a stretch to compare our small beginning to the launch of the space shuttle. There was a lot less fanfare (at least on earth). We were excited to have over 100 in attendance on our first day. There was no media coverage. The truth is, most people in our community don't even know we exist (yet). But there are two ways I think it's worthy of the space shuttle comparison. The first is the boldness and pioneering spirit of our launch team. It still amazes me that this little band of Christ-followers has jumped into this thing the way they have, given sacrificially of themselves and their resources, and valued each other. The second is the reality that, like the shuttle, most of the energy is expended just to get off the ground. At some point in the future of the Springs, we'll break free from the gravitational pull of smallness, lack of resources, lack of exposure in the community, lack of this and that. People who come along in the future will not be in touch with the enormous effort put forth by the launch team and other partners in this ministry, just like people don't remember the giant fuel tanks and booster rockets that fall off of the shuttle just moments after launch. It's not a glamorous job, but you don't fly without them. I thank God these days that I find myself surrounded by booster rocket people.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Pray 2 Launch!
Many of you who read this blog are already visiting the Pray 2 Launch site daily (see web links to the right). If you're not, I hope you'll take a moment to subscribe to the site and begin praying with us from now through our dedication service on 10/28.
God works when people pray. Don't ask me to explain it, but I've experienced it too many times to ever doubt that it's true. I took a trip to Romania back in the '90s, not long after that country's dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu, had been executed and the country had opened up to the West. I'd never seen anything like it: massive amounts of money had been invested in construction of beautiful cities, but no money had been invested in infrastructure. There seemed to be no plan for how to repair, supply, and keep the cities running after they were built. We were doing concerts in beautiful performance halls, but half of the light bulbs were burned out and there was no heat. Cars and trucks would sit on the side of the road for weeks or months, because repair parts weren't available. People would line up on the sidewalk if a store got a shipment of toilet paper, and leave their faucets on all day with buckets underneath them, waiting for water to actually come out. I found Christians in Romania to be people of great faith: because they were devoted to Christ in a nation whose government was hostile to Christianity, and because what they needed to survive didn't happen unless God worked miracles. They were very resourceful, and very prayerful. And I watched God answer their prayers daily: government officials turned a blind eye this day; unexpected work came on that day; a friend got extra gas in the gas line and shared it today. And always (as God apparently loves to do) just in time.
We middle class Americans are blinded by our excellent infrastructure into believing that meat just appears at the grocery store, that gas just appears at the pump, that water and electricity just appear at home (even "home" is an assumption). But this adventure we call Church @ the Springs is just far enough outside our infrastructure that we can't depend on things to "just happen." We have to pray in order to have a location where we can hold services, and God answers that prayer through other Christians at the YMCA who show us favor and partner with us in this ministry. We have to pray in order to have financial resources, and to date we've had what we needed "just in time." Today we have a payment to make on the equipment we need for our services, and we'll have almost no money left, but we have enough today and we pray for what we need by the end of the month. We pray for volunteers to serve children and transport our equipment on Sundays, and we have a great response just a few weeks before our first service. We're living like the Romanians did, and I haven't felt like that, haven't been that in touch with God's daily provision, in over a decade.
Hopefully things won't always be like this. But hopefully we'll never lose sight of the fact that nothing happens unless God opens doors for us. People won't come to faith in Christ, won't have their lives and families and neighborhoods transformed, unless someone prays and God works. We are those someones, so pray. Pray every day.
Core Practice: Prayer
Creed: I pray to God to know Him, to lay my request before Him and to find direction for my daily life
Text: Psalm 66:16-20
http://www.ibs.org/niv/passagesearch.php?passage_request=psalm+66%3A16-20&tniv=yes&submit=Lookup
God works when people pray. Don't ask me to explain it, but I've experienced it too many times to ever doubt that it's true. I took a trip to Romania back in the '90s, not long after that country's dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu, had been executed and the country had opened up to the West. I'd never seen anything like it: massive amounts of money had been invested in construction of beautiful cities, but no money had been invested in infrastructure. There seemed to be no plan for how to repair, supply, and keep the cities running after they were built. We were doing concerts in beautiful performance halls, but half of the light bulbs were burned out and there was no heat. Cars and trucks would sit on the side of the road for weeks or months, because repair parts weren't available. People would line up on the sidewalk if a store got a shipment of toilet paper, and leave their faucets on all day with buckets underneath them, waiting for water to actually come out. I found Christians in Romania to be people of great faith: because they were devoted to Christ in a nation whose government was hostile to Christianity, and because what they needed to survive didn't happen unless God worked miracles. They were very resourceful, and very prayerful. And I watched God answer their prayers daily: government officials turned a blind eye this day; unexpected work came on that day; a friend got extra gas in the gas line and shared it today. And always (as God apparently loves to do) just in time.
We middle class Americans are blinded by our excellent infrastructure into believing that meat just appears at the grocery store, that gas just appears at the pump, that water and electricity just appear at home (even "home" is an assumption). But this adventure we call Church @ the Springs is just far enough outside our infrastructure that we can't depend on things to "just happen." We have to pray in order to have a location where we can hold services, and God answers that prayer through other Christians at the YMCA who show us favor and partner with us in this ministry. We have to pray in order to have financial resources, and to date we've had what we needed "just in time." Today we have a payment to make on the equipment we need for our services, and we'll have almost no money left, but we have enough today and we pray for what we need by the end of the month. We pray for volunteers to serve children and transport our equipment on Sundays, and we have a great response just a few weeks before our first service. We're living like the Romanians did, and I haven't felt like that, haven't been that in touch with God's daily provision, in over a decade.
Hopefully things won't always be like this. But hopefully we'll never lose sight of the fact that nothing happens unless God opens doors for us. People won't come to faith in Christ, won't have their lives and families and neighborhoods transformed, unless someone prays and God works. We are those someones, so pray. Pray every day.
Core Practice: Prayer
Creed: I pray to God to know Him, to lay my request before Him and to find direction for my daily life
Text: Psalm 66:16-20
http://www.ibs.org/niv/passagesearch.php?passage_request=psalm+66%3A16-20&tniv=yes&submit=Lookup
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Partners In the Gospel
One of the great things about this season of starting the Springs has been the relationships I've enjoyed with other pastors and church leaders. I am excited to call members and leaders of several other area churches friends and partners in the gospel. I appreciate the way I've been befriended and made to feel welcome. Several churches have found creative ways to help me and our church during our start-up, something for which I will always be grateful. When I was on the other side of this equation--being the staff member of a larger, more established church--I was generally bad with these kinds of things. I wasn't against anyone, I was just so engulfed in my own responsibilities and goals that I considered it an inefficient use of my time to focus on other churches' needs or invest time in getting to know other church leaders. I'm so glad to have received better than I gave.
I hope we all have a sense of partnership with other Christians and churches in our community. The truth is, we couldn't be starting the Springs without the support of several existing local churches and several more in other cities. One local pastor talked to me about his sense of responsibility for the spiritual welfare of our community; the weight of that statement hit me hard, but there was immediate encouragement in knowing that no church or leader has to carry that weight alone. And I was impressed that he accepted that responsibility, that he had a personal stake in whether or not people in our community respond to Christ and follow Him.
What we're about is much bigger than the Springs. Our mission is to help people connect to Christ, not necessarily to get everyone to "join" the Springs (whatever that may mean). When we come to see our part of the Church as the only legitimate, effective, or correct expression of the church in the community, we've really messed up. Numerically, all of us together are still a minority in our community: only about a quarter of us are actively involved in church life, so I doubt more than half of us are practicing Christians. The reality that we are as separated as we are is a contributing factor in our lack of success. I don't mean that we worship in separate buildings on Sundays; I mean that we don't seem to feel any connecting to each other the other 6 days of the week. I continue to wonder how people in the community who aren't Christians process the fact that followers of Christ from various churches have little or no relationship with each other. Anything we say about Christ's ability to connect us to each other must ring hollow. If you are such a person, I'd love to hear from you and get your thoughts on how you view Christians and churches in our community.
Based on what I know about my street right now, there are at least 3 churches represented. Only recently have those Christians begun relationships with each other that are distinguishable from other relationships in the neighborhood. I have no agenda that my Christian neighbors jump ship and start coming to our church instead of the one they currently go to. But I do have an agenda that all of us who are followers of Christ start acting like the church in our neighborhood. We can go to various churches, but there's no reason--no excuse, really--not to be the church together right where we are.
I hope we all have a sense of partnership with other Christians and churches in our community. The truth is, we couldn't be starting the Springs without the support of several existing local churches and several more in other cities. One local pastor talked to me about his sense of responsibility for the spiritual welfare of our community; the weight of that statement hit me hard, but there was immediate encouragement in knowing that no church or leader has to carry that weight alone. And I was impressed that he accepted that responsibility, that he had a personal stake in whether or not people in our community respond to Christ and follow Him.
What we're about is much bigger than the Springs. Our mission is to help people connect to Christ, not necessarily to get everyone to "join" the Springs (whatever that may mean). When we come to see our part of the Church as the only legitimate, effective, or correct expression of the church in the community, we've really messed up. Numerically, all of us together are still a minority in our community: only about a quarter of us are actively involved in church life, so I doubt more than half of us are practicing Christians. The reality that we are as separated as we are is a contributing factor in our lack of success. I don't mean that we worship in separate buildings on Sundays; I mean that we don't seem to feel any connecting to each other the other 6 days of the week. I continue to wonder how people in the community who aren't Christians process the fact that followers of Christ from various churches have little or no relationship with each other. Anything we say about Christ's ability to connect us to each other must ring hollow. If you are such a person, I'd love to hear from you and get your thoughts on how you view Christians and churches in our community.
Based on what I know about my street right now, there are at least 3 churches represented. Only recently have those Christians begun relationships with each other that are distinguishable from other relationships in the neighborhood. I have no agenda that my Christian neighbors jump ship and start coming to our church instead of the one they currently go to. But I do have an agenda that all of us who are followers of Christ start acting like the church in our neighborhood. We can go to various churches, but there's no reason--no excuse, really--not to be the church together right where we are.
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