susan boyle and leadership

Just this morning I watched the YouTube video of Susan's performance again. One of her statements before she sang arrested me. When Simon asked her about her dream, she replied that it was to be a professional singer. He then asked why her dream had not worked out. Her answer was that she had never been given a chance.

I believe that the chief role of leadership in any capacity, in the home, in the church, or in the government and business world, is to bring the dreams of those being led to life. I wonder how many "Susans" are out there; people with an incredible God-given dream and potential. Their gift, their dream lies dormant because no one has ever given them a chance. They have been pre-judged on appearance or social status. Perhaps even worse, they have been discouraged by those who should have been encouraging. Instead of seeing the potential, the focus is on the external things instead of the work of God.

Let me illustrate - my son Justin is in grad school at Clemson University. He is able to combine two deep heart dreams - teaching and math. Those that know Justin will attest to the fact that he is excitable as well. He gets excited about his passions. I had a conversation about Justin with a church leader several years ago. In the conversation he remarked that he could not see how Justin could be a teacher; he was too excitable. I could not believe what I was hearing! A church leader was actually discouraging Justin from engaging in his passion, from living his dream.

Unfortunately the conversation about Justin reveals an attitude that is far too prevalent in the world today. If you desire to be significant in the world, help people achieve their dreams. Give them a chance.

susan boyle

From time to time, an event occurs that seems even more magical than the best fairy tale. The recent events on the Britians Got Talent 2009 show is exactly one of those events. If you haven't seen Susan Boyle's performance of I Dreamed a Dream, you can find it on YouTube. Take the time to watch it. Something deep inside of me is deeply touched as I listen to her sing. Apparently it has resonated with other people as well. The various videos of her performance have been watched over 11 million times since the show.

Her story is such a living parable. When she came on stage, people had no idea of what lay underneath her plain appearance and her slightly goofy manner. When she shared her dream, the audience responds derisively. Yet the moment her voice pierces through the cynicism, people respond with cheers. She sings of a dream shattered, of love lost. Somehow her story seems to touch the heart of the listeners, her voice soaring above the disillusionment. In that moment she seems to sing from the heart of God.

Yet is this not like God? We judge by appearances. Yet most frequently God is found in unlikely places. Keep your eyes open, you may just find God in unexpected places!

church?

As some of you know, we had a rather interesting Easter Sunday. I will comment on the events since so many people have been calling, emailing, and stopping by. What follows are my both my experience and thoughts.

After being part of a small group dialoging about God’s plan for marriage on Sunday morning, we attended a local church. That is where it got interesting. We were met outside of the auditorium by several church leaders and refused entry. They gave no reason for their actions. However, we have since received a brief letter outlining the reason for their actions. Rather than attempt to recreate what was said, I quote the letter:


The fact that we asked you not to attend [name deleted] functions is not a personal attack. As evidence of what we have seen over time in actions, emails, and views conveyed in teachings and your blog, the attitude towards the local church is one we cannot tolerate or welcome into what God has called us to.

We have made a decision that this email will be our only response to you and we ask that you will please respect our decisions.

I am rather curious about the statement that my attitude toward the local church cannot be tolerated. I feel that it would be beneficial for me to outline what I believe about the local church. I welcome your input and correction. Feel free to point out where you feel my beliefs are contrary to scripture.

Ø I believe that church is the “ecclesia”, the “called out ones”. The church is not a building or a program. It is people, people connecting around Jesus Christ the Head. It is people doing life together, eating together, sharing our resources, and gathering together to encourage and spur each other on. It is people following Jesus together, caring for each other, praying with and for each other. It is people engaging in the ministry of Jesus together, binding up the brokenhearted, healing the sick, and setting the captive free.

Ø The church cannot be destroyed. Jesus said that the gates of hell would not prevail against the church. No created being, angel, demon, or human can stop the work of God. If something that calls itself church can be destroyed, then it wasn’t the church in the first place, it was only a facsimile of the real thing.

Ø The Head of the church is Jesus. The pastor is not the head; the elders are not the head. Jesus sets the agenda for the church. That doesn’t negate leadership. God has set leadership in place. However, His paradigm of leadership is one where the leaders exist for the benefit of the people. (This follows Jesus’ example.)

Ø I believe that far too frequently the “stuff” of church has replaced God. We become enamored with programs, buildings and hierarchy. In doing so, we lose our love for people. The system becomes more important than people.

Ø The concept of “going to church” is remarkably absent from the New Testament. Church is not something to go to but something to be. I don’t go to the body of Christ; I am a specific part of the body of Christ.

Ø There is not a correct formula to gather and meet together. The church can meet in a cathedral, a living room, or a coffee shop.

Ø When people follow Jesus, church will emerge. The desire for fellowship, relationship and community is resident in every believer. However, when our focus moves from Jesus to church, Jesus usually gets left behind.

Ø The Jewish religious system was destroyed by Jesus We no longer have a need for a holy man, a holy time, and a holy space. Every believer is a priest. Instead of stones and mortar the “temple” is now built of living stones.

If you peruse the blog you will find that I chronicle my thoughts about the church from time to time. In May of 2008 I posted several times about my observations of church. I would encourage you to re-read those posts as well.

As far as my actions toward church, Bev and I relate to and serve a number of churches in Central Pennsylvania and beyond. These churches are as varied as the people of which the church is comprised. Some are larger and meet in a building. Some are smaller groups that meet in homes or other places. One is not better than the other; all are the body of Christ. My desire is that all believers in these churches will become fully alive in their God-given purpose.

Since the church leaders that sent me the letter choose not to dialogue with me, I welcome your input and would be happy to dialogue on this forum. Feel free to go back to previous posts and measure my comments against scripture. If you feel that I am in error, please comment.

FYI - I will not allow this to become a platform from which to vilify people or churches. If I feel that your post has venom in it directed at other people, I will not post it.

our addiction to church

I have noticed that people who are "lost" usually resort to some kind of addiction to replace their oneness with God. Now before you assume that lost people are the bad people "out there", let me clarify. A person becomes lost the moment that they disconnect with God. Adam and Eve were lost the moment that they decided to act independently of God. And so it is today. Anytime that we choose to act independently of God, we become lost.

Since we were created for significance and since true significance is found in our connection with God, our disconnect with God sends us on a search to fill the void. If we do not return to our connection with God, other gods beckon us. Those gods quickly turn into addictions that master us.

Upon hearing the word "addiction", most people immediately think of obvious addictions, alcoholism, drug abuse, sexual perversions, and gambling. While these vices certainly are addictions, they are the less dangerous addictions. The most dangerous addictions are those that appear to be good. Most lost people do not engage in the obvious addictions, rather they engage in the good addictions to fill the void; things like hobbies, fitness, and religious activities.

In my observation, the most insidious of all addictions is most prevalent among Christians. It is our addiction to church. When I use the term "church" I am not referring to the Biblical concept of the "ecclesia". What I am referring to is our contemporary paradigm of church - Sunday morning meetings, programs, a building, and the governmental hierarchy that accompanies it. Remember our addictions are a result of our disconnect with God. We fill the void with some other god. The man that turns to alcohol will usually be aware of destructive behavior. However the man who disconnects from God and fills the void with church convinces himself of his goodness.

Our addiction to church not only strengthens our disconnect with God, it causes us to resist the very God we declare we serve. This deception is not new. The Pharisees of Jesus' day were the guardians of good doctrine. They read the scriptures. They lived differently than the general public. They were zealous for their religious tradition. Yet they missed God. Not only did they miss God, they resisted Him to the point breaking their own religious laws in their opposition to Him.

And so it is today - Christian vociferously defend their paradigm of church. If you dare mess with their god, be ready to be attacked. Good people behave in bizarre ways as their addiction is threatened. For a good many years now, I have spent time both "in the world" and "in the church". I can tell you this, the church is more brutal and cruel than the world. (Again I am using the word church in the contemporary manner not in the Biblical manner.) Most people in the world will admit their addictions when the conversations become vulnerable. The problem with our addiction to church is that we assume our godless behavior is godly.

We are destined to continue our addiction to church as long as we continue to disconnect from God. The solution to our addiction to church is the same as overcoming any other addictions. Only as we reconnect with God will we overcome our destructive behaviors.