O Come Let Us Adore Him

We are just a day and a half away from Christmas. I don't know if you'll be able to join me at the church for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day worship, so just in case I don't see you I want to wish you a Merry Christmas! I know some take offense at the recent movement in society to neuter the story of Jesus' birth from the holiday extravaganza Christmas has morphed into. Personally I don't take offense. Obviously for many Christmas is simply another holiday marked by family gatherings and gift giving. In truth, no one can take from me the meaning of Christ's birth. And I suspect God is less concerned about culture's hijacking of Christmas then about the Christian who doesn't honor the true meaning of Jesus's birth in her or his own heart. So my prayer for you is that your heart will remain ever faithful to Christ. Then you will have Christmas in you, all year round! Joy and peace, Don

Growing Up

I expect spiritual growth to happen. In me and in those who call themselves Christians. I see the role of the church to seed and fertilize Christian faith in others. This process is a corporate effort meaning we all share responsibility for nurturing faith in one another. The preacher's 20 minutes of "this is what I think it says and here's what I think it means" is only a small part of how God nurtures faith in the believer. Its take a whole community to raise a disciple of Jesus Christ. We claim as much in our baptism liturgy where the entire congregation vows, "With God's help we will proclaim the good news and live according to the example of Christ. We will surround this person with a community of love and forgiveness, that he/she may grow in his/her service to others. We will pray for them, that they may be a true disciple who walks in the way that leads to life." Its been my experience that when people aren't growing in their faith its for one of two reasons. Either the church as a whole is failing its role as a spiritual mentor to the individual or the individual is resisting the pull of the Holy Spirit in his or her life. The difficulty is measuring spiritual growth. There are no tests for it. Bible knowledge is no guarantee of spiritual maturity; consider the TV evangelist! Nor is frequent church attendance or Bible study any guarantee of growth in faith, though it would be difficult to grow without it. Ultimately spiritual growth is about nurturing a personal relationship with Jesus where the Christian not only recognizes Jesus' presence on the journey of faith but depends on it. And perhaps its the "depending" that is the most difficult. Until our dependency on Christ becomes as natural as taking a breath of air, we remain infants in the faith.  In the words of Hebrews 5:12-14,

For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic elements of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food; for everyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is unskilled in the word of righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, for those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.

Jesus World Goes Bust

Historically, United Methodism has been a leader in connecting faith to the larger community. Unlike some churches which believe Jesus calls his Church to isolate itself from the corrupting forces of this world, Methodism sought to go out into the world and redeem it.  There was a time when Methodism was considered radical and cutting edge. Many of the first hospitals, educational institutions, and social service agencies were founded by the Methodist Church. I believe we need to rediscover and kindle the passion that has driven the church in the past to engage in life changing ministry. God wants to transform the world through us, not create "Jesus World," a place where Christians live isolated from a humanity that desperately needs it and the Gospel of grace entrusted to it. We can change the world again if we are willing to get our hands dirty on the brokenness, failure, and sin of others. I'd like to know your thoughts on this and what we can do to transform the world.