Jostling is part of what makes a crowd a crowd. We push back to keep our place in line, to stand our ground, or to reach our destination. Jostling, while not physical, can be part of advancing our careers, making our point, or just looking out for ourselves. We are often both the jostlers and …
Continue reading “32634 Live in Harmony and Be Humble Toward One Another”
No concept has catalyzed the production of more music, poetry, art, writing, or film than love. From highbrow artistic creations to playground rhymes to marketing campaigns to pharmaceuticals to our most cherished dreams and aspirations, love, and our human experience of it, is undeniably center stage. Love, it turns out, is also central to God, Jesus, faith, and being …
A congregation does not thrive on a foundation of superstars. The passages below call everyone into the foundational work of building each other up. It is not solely the leaders’ work. In the Church everyone encourages, teaches, and motivates everyone else, and should do so with the warmth and equality of teammates. No one in our congregations …
Continue reading “32632 Encourage, Instruct, and Spur On One Another”
Have you ever walked into a full elevator and, instead of turning toward the door, remained facing your fellow occupants? People in elevators, like people in many other contexts, follow particular unspoken rules. Congregations are no different, each having beautifully (and sometimes not so beautifully) characteristic ways of relating that are specific to that church. …
These guidelines are designed to get you started on the discernment process. Since the decision to commit to a church involves both discernment and process, you know it’s not simple and it takes time! Use the church’s website, their printed documents, what you observe while in their space, and tactful conversations with real people to help you check items …
Continue reading “32623 A Practical Guide for Finding a Church”
Discernment is hard work. Given the other stresses of transitions, we easily replace discernment with the more efficient church-shopping. If Amazon sold churches, we could just read customer reviews and select the one everybody likes best! This is the tricky part—how to make wise decisions but not fall back into a consumerist mindset? How can …
How to Avoid Church-Shopping but Still Decide on a Church “What’s the most I can get for my money?” Whether it’s a return on an investment or looking for the best deal on a product, this question is central to a consumer mindset. Not a bad question to avoid wasting resources, but it’s a terrible question to …
Paul Simon sang in “I am a Rock”: “I have no need of friendship; friendship causes pain…If I never loved I never would have cried. I am a rock, I am an island.” The Church, at its heart is about relationships—relationships with others and relationship with God. But relationships are hard and being truly open …
Throughout the history of the people of Israel, there were occasions when God spoke in visions and dreams as documented in the Scriptures. God appeared to Abraham in a vision and repeated his promise to make him great (Genesis 15:1). Prophets like Daniel, Ezekiel, Hosea, Nahum and others recorded in their writing that they received …
We can glean insights from God through parallel examples. There are two kinds of parallel examples. The Bible is written as an example for us. The stories and characters in the Bible give us insights into life as it is and as it should or could be. The power of the Biblical narratives is the …