Faith in Community

It is one thing to gripe and complain all day. It is another thing to actually promote positive change. So, what would a healthy faith community look like?

First of all, I don't think that a healthy faith is explored alone. We need people! This is contrary to much of what we hear about spirituality. Faith, in the US, is often considered something explored individually.  Part of the reason for this is our history. One of the core principles that our nation was founded upon was Religious Liberty, and that liberty was based within the context of individual conscious. Soul liberty is a good thing - even a great thing. Our faith should not be dictated to us by a government, society, etc.

However, when we throw the baby out with the bathwater, we miss out on one of the foundational elements of faith - loving one another. The Christian faith was established within the context of community and  to be practiced in community.  From Acts 2:

 The believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the community, to their shared meals, and to their prayers.  A sense of awe came over everyone. God performed many wonders and signs through the apostles. All the believers were united and shared everything.  They would sell pieces of property and possessions and distribute the proceeds to everyone who needed them. Every day, they met together in the temple and ate in their homes. They shared food with gladness and simplicity. They praised God and demonstrated God’s goodness to everyone. The Lord added daily to the community those who were being saved.

Community was even an essential part of the Church's ordinances. The same words shared or sharing above was used in I Corinthians 10:16, which describes the Eucharist -

Isn’t the cup of blessing that we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Isn’t the loaf of bread that we break a sharing in the body of Christ?

Community was an essential part of how God disseminates the Good News. In Ephesians 3:10 Paul states that the revelation of God's plan happens 'through the Church' and that utilizing the Church is a part of God's eternal purpose.

Lone Ranger spirituality is clearly not a part of the Christian experience. It is bound to fall short. But, there are many people who are no longer comfortable in the spiritual context of the traditional church. what are we to do with them(us)? The Lone Ranger way seems like the only route.

I think new spiritual communities are the only answer. The Church is not going to change. I don't even think it is capable of changing. Change has never been a part of its DNA. So, the change will have to come from the outside. Bands of outsiders will one day gather for what happens next, and that will be the key to the future.

What would such a band of people look like? What is spiritual community supposed to look like?

Prayer 6.1

God of all faith,

I don't need this. Things have been going so well. I have been so content. I would have left the ministry long before I did if I would have known that it was this nice.  

I no longer feel like my head sits beneath an ever-present guillotine. There is no more ticking IED lodged somewhere in my life. I don't stay up at night worrying about the day to come. My path to tomorrow no longer seems to be paved in eggshells. I feel free.  

So, why on Earth would I ever want to go back? I don't know how thoughts of returning  ever made it past my sanity filter!  

Please, God. Tell me no. Close these doors and bar my return.

Prayer 5.30

God of eternity,

I do not fear you. Apparently, I am supposed to.  What could be the point? I don't feel like it would do any good, I don't feel like you would want me to, and I think it is better if I don't.

What good is it to fear you? Fearing an immutable god is like fearing an immovable mountain. You are that you are.

Do you really want me to fear you? If my daughter ever came to me on her knees and said "Daddy, I'm scared of you," I think I would crawl into a whole and bury myself. Could you possibly want me to fear you, Abba?

Isn't it better that I don't fear you? Wouldn't it be preferable to be a fearless father, a father beyond the realm of fear? That is the father that I want to be, and I'm sure you are better at this than me. Doesn't perfect love cast out fear?

Help me to be fearless, Father. And help me, Father, to fear less of you.

Mother

Mom, I can't do this anymore. I'm done.

Oh, come on now, honey. Things are different this time. You'll see. 

You say that every time.

Oh, but this time is different. I have got myself in a very good place. You should see the new house.

I don't want to see the new house. I don't want to see the old house.

This new one, is really something. We have swingsets for the kids and even a pool. Bring your sweet kids by. They will love the new house!

No, Mother! Stop it!

Oh, sit down and don't be so dramatic. 

How can you afford all this stuff, anyway? You have all these houses, you drive a BMW...

Why are you so worried about money? Do you need some money? Here, let me get my checkbook. 

No, stop it. Don't. I do not want your money.

You never minded taking it before. 

Called

A post I wrote years ago, before the Calling was left behind:

When I was a kid, I was weird. Big surprise, huh? You know how most kids would watch cartoons and then run outside and pretend they were the superhero? I was the kid that pretended he was the villain.

Another thing, you know how most kids wanted to be a cop, or a fireman, or an astronaut. Not me. I remember briefly wanting to be a doctor, but I was real young, and my mom thought that was a good way for her to retire. But, the first dream I formulated myself wasn’t medical, it was spiritual.

I have always wanted to be a pastor. I grew up around the Church, listening to church folks converse, and watching pastors minister. I look back on my life and I can see how pastoral ministry has been inevitable for me.

• I preached my first sermon in 5th grade (I stood on a crate to see over the pulpit)
• I was 14 the first time I helped a person convert to Christianity. She was about 35.
• I sat by myself on the bus because I brought my Bible with me to school.
• I could spell Ryrie before I could spell my last name. I was kind of a Bible geek.

I also recall being aware that I was on track to become a pastor. I felt the “calling.” Then I hit adolescence in full force. Also, I started attending a Christian high school. That cured of a lot of my passion for ministry.

Anyway, here I am living the dream. How many people can say that? How many people can say, “I’m doing what I’ve always wanted to do”? I can. Which is why I will have such a hard time leaving the Calling behind.

I love the Calling. I love the Ministry. I am unspeakably disappointed and frustrated by the Church, and what the Church turns people into. I lie awake at night, wondering if I’ve actually become the villain.

Prayer 5.29

God,

I was always taught that certainty was a result of faith, but the more I have explored this faith, the less certainty I have found.

Can I hear your voice within the noise of doubt?

The people who were most certain and most confident were always the role models of faith. These were the people that we all knew had a special kinship with you. We all wanted to become more certain so we could become closer to you.

Can I see your face a midst the fog of uncertainty?

I haven't had certainty about anything since I was a kid and even then I think I was forcing it. You have left so much room for questions and the answers all sound like manifestations of insecurity. So, no; I am not certain of much.

Is elusiveness a characteristic of your divinity?

Lord, I believe. Please help my unbelief.

Adullam's Cave

I am reminded today of what a pastor once called the church planter's theme verse: 1 Sam 22:2. Go meditate on it, esp. if you're a planter!
— Daniel Kirk (@jrdkirk) May 17, 2013

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1 Samuel 22:2
Common English Bible (CEB)
Everyone who was in trouble, in debt, or in desperate circumstances gathered around David, and he became their leader. Approximately four hundred men joined him.

David was a mess. His whole life had been thrown into shambles. He was on the run from King Saul. His life was in jeopardy. He had no sword, no food, and little hope. He had gone from his nation's great hero, to a banished outlaw.

What had happened?

He was tracking extremely well. His skyrocket to stardom had been epic. But, then the fickle king lost his marbles, and David's star fell faster than it rose. The people used to sing his name during street parties. His exploits were lauded and retold around his nation's cook fires. He had been anointed to become the next, chosen King!

He was the ultimate insider. Now, he was a disdained outsider. He had to lie to a priest just to get enough food to survive. He had wandered into the land of the Gentiles, looking for refuge.

He did find refuge, but he found it in a place that even the Gentiles despised - Adullam's Cave. It was, quite literally, a den of thieves. The cave was populated by outlaws, escaped criminals, and people, like David, who were just plain hungry. Adullam's Cave was a place where stories ended. When life took a bad turn, things ended at the Cave. But, not David. David's already remarkable story, was going to begin all over.

As the story goes, four hundred outsiders joined David at the Cave, and found new meaning, new direction. So did David. Under the direction of God, David struck out from the Cave to take what God had annointed him to have. And his outsiders? Those four hundred ruffians, thieves, and outlaws many of them became known as the Mighty Men. The Mighty Men were a band of brothers that became legendary in history for their amazing exploits as the great core of David's revolution.

David's path to the throne went through a den of thieves. The inside track required a group of outsiders.