Emerging accountability?

Posted on April 30, 2008
Filed Under church | 17 Comments

Yesterday I was quite horrified when I read an article on CNN about a couple who allowed their daughter to die from diabetes, because they were convinced God would heal her. I came to the conclusion that they were wacky Christians, and wondered why it is that it’s always the weird Christians or the fundamentalists that make the rest of us seem a little odd to the rest of the world. One, however, has to be open minded when reading media reports, because, as we know, the whole context of a situation is not always reported, and they can be biased. Before I continue you might want to read the article here, if you have not done so already.

In some way I guess this couple really thought they were living in faith, as they were utterly convinced that their daughter was going to be healed and raised from the dead. Both of them were convinced this would happen. Me, I would have given up after a while and gone to a doctor. Maybe some would say, then, that I have little faith? However, from reading the article it is clear that their belief system was a little eccentric.

What has really had me thinking over the past day though is that the family did not belong to any “organized religion or faith group”. They used to go to a pentecostal church, but moved to Wisconsin to open a coffee shop and started a prayer group there. They were seen as being “religious isolationists” The local police chief was quoted as saying: “They have gone out on their own,” he said. “… They have a very narrow view of Scripture and I would say not many people hold to that narrow of view.”

The coffee shop and prayer group made me read a little harder! ;-) Some people who are leaving institutionalized church (IC) are gathering in or opening third spaces such as coffee houses, book shops etc; as well as a host of other things. Due to this couples deemed isolation it has made me think about accountability and affiliation when it comes to emerging /missional “plants”. More and more are leaving church and gathering in smaller communities. Generally those gathering do not have a narrow view of scripture, as this couple have, and most gatherings are running successfully - however you deem that success to be. However, I guess many IC’s would consider these communities to be isolationist.

I think church has become too much like a business and rather legalistic. However, do you think new gatherings outside of IC should have more accountability or affiliation, if so in what form, and where would it come from? I’m curious as to what your thoughts are.

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Emergent church?

Posted on April 29, 2008
Filed Under church | 9 Comments

At a meeting last night it was suggested that the church we attend was an emerging church. I nearly choked on the tortilla chips I was eating when I heard this. It’s maybe on its way there, but a long way off at the moment!

I think a lot of people are still very confused about emergent. I don’t want to take part in any picky denomination debate etc; but it is certainly evident that some mainstream churches have come to the conclusion, that a slightly different church service format equates to them being an emerging church.

The trouble is the service may be slightly changed, but the general church ethos doesn’t appear to change. The people are still encouraged to look inwardly at the church building, meetings, encouraged to bring the people in etc rather than a more outward looking approach.

I’m still pondering in my mind over this statement and how bad a job Jonathan and I are obviously doing in communicating to the people where we are. I guess at our old church it was a six year uphill struggle, and we are seeing the fruit from that now. I guess it will be the same here.

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walk on

Posted on April 24, 2008
Filed Under music | 4 Comments

I have to confess that when I first met Jonathan and he told me he was a U2 fan, I groaned. “What do you like them for?” I asked. Jonathan politely told me that I didn’t appreciate good music! About three years into our marriage U2 released their Elevation album, and I was hooked! I’ve missed out on seeing them live twice; once in Vancouver where I was weeks away from giving birth to our daughter, and once at Twickenham in London - we had the tickets, but not the babysitters! Next time we get tickets I will go! I’m writing all of this simply to share some song lyrics with you which really speak to Jonathan and I. I think they are really apt for many of us who have been on a “different” kind of Christian journey over the past few years. You can watch the video on You Tube here as well if you want!

Walk On

And love
It’s not the easy thing
The only baggage
That you can bring
Not the easy thing
The only baggage
you can bring
Is all that you
can’t leave behind

And if the
darkness is to
keep us apart
And if the
daylight feels
like it’s a long
way off
And if your glass
heart should crack
Before the second
you turn back
Oh no, be strong

Walk on
Walk on
What you got, they
can’t steal it
No they can’t even feel it

Walk on
Walk on
Stay safe tonight

You’re packing a
suitcase for a place
None of us has been
A place that has
to be believed
To be seen

You could have flown away
A singing bird
In an open cage
Who will only fly
Only fly for freedom

Walk on
Walk on
What you got
You can’t deny it
Can’t sell it or buy it

Walk on
Walk on
You stay safe tonight

And I know it aches
How your heart it breaks
You can only take so much

Walk on
Walk on

Home
Hard to know what it is
If you never had one

Home
I can’t say where it is
But I know I’m going

Home
That’s where the heart is

And I know it aches
And your heart it breaks
You can only take so much
Walk on

Leave it behind
You’ve got to
leave it behind

All that you fashion
All that you make
All that you build
All that you break

All that you measure
All that you feel
All this you can
leave behind

All that you reason
All that you care

It’s only time
And I’ll never
fill up all my
mind

All that you sense
All that you scheme
All you dress up
And all that you see

All you create
All that you wreck
All that you hate

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Fickleness

Posted on April 21, 2008
Filed Under God, faith | 4 Comments

I’ve been aware today of how very fickle my trust in God can be at times. Many of you know that we are in the process of emigrating to Canada. I regularly visit an immigration forum where fellow “hopefuls” share their journey so far. It seems that some who applied around the time we did are now being asked for medicals. This has really made me bouncy and positive for the past few days, as, usually within a month or so of medicals (providing you pass them) you get the lovely permanent residency visa stamp in your passport! After a long process now, it seems as if Canada is finally on our doorstep. I’ve been praising God and praying “bring on the medicals Lord!” I’m so excited about what God has in store for us in the future.

Zoom on in my day to a few hours ago, and my mood suddenly changes. We’ve learned, from said forum, that the Canadian government are proposing a change to their immigration system. It seems they are wanting to focus on particular skills they require, thus bumping the people who hold these skills up in the queue, and basically forgetting about the rest. Now, before anyone jumps down my throat, I must point out here that I think this is great, if a country is short of a particular skill then they should seek people out skilled in that area. However, I’m not so sure if it’s good for us, when this proposed motion will come into effect etc etc. My bouncy mood has deteriorated and I feel a little anxious. If we get a big no from the Canadian High Commission, then that will leave me questioning everything I have ever heard from God, even if I actually hear from Him in the way I think I do. There have been so many things that have happened over the past few years that indicate that Canada is where God wants us, that it would be very hard if it all fell apart.

I’m definitely like one of the Israelites. God sent the plagues, released them from slavery in Egypt, made way for them to cross the Red Sea (incidentally it’s passover week!) and they were only so far into the journey, found themselves in a desert, and suddenly the miracles that God had done for them are forgotten about, and they’re moaning because they are h0t and hungry, and asking why has God done this to them, they were better off as slaves etc (shheesh, it’s hard to please some people!). That is it really though, isn’t it, the simple fact is, as soon as it gets a little tough and isn’t running as smooth as we like, we simply forget about what God has recently said to us, done for us etc and start to doubt, whine or moan.

I guess faith is the main part of our journey with God, and I have to hang on to those promises I believe God has given us, and claim them. My mood is now getting bouncier again, yet I feel discouraged with how hot and cold I can blow with God.

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Priceless!

Posted on April 19, 2008
Filed Under children | 2 Comments

Sometimes my daughter says the most priceless things. The other day we were watching a movie and I had given Grace a bag of nuts to share with her daddy - they both enjoy shelling monkey nuts together (I’m not sure if they are called that in N.America? Basically peanuts in a shell). There was a quarter of a large bag left when I gave them to her. After a while I noticed an empty bag on the floor and Grace sat in front of a bowl full of broken up peanut shells, with Daddy on the other side of the room. I said to her “Gracie, did you eat all of those monkey nuts?” Her reply, “No, I didn’t, I think I’ve lost one in the bowl somewhere!” It was definitely a funny childhood memory moment!

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