Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Merry Christmas Friends - See you in 2010!

Merry Christmas friends! The light of the world has come near to us! Share the Kingdom of God...love as you have been loved...speak the truth in love...be bold enough to live the presence of Jesus in every moment and aspect of your life!

We will return in the new year with more posts...provocative thoughts and challenges and more sharing that will encourage us in a new age and praxis of ministry!

In Jesus, Robin

Friday, December 18, 2009

Where real life is lived

It is amazing to me that so many people "outside of the walls of church-world" believe that followers of Jesus are ALWAYS on the top of the mountain. Denial IS something that is as prominent in most local churches as is the liturgical colors on the altar and lecturn. Most people believe that it is "real" to come into spiritual community and wear the Jesus smile. Unfortunately, it isn't real. And if there is one thing we are learning from the culture is that people are dying for authenticity. People are tired of lies, 1/2 truths, painted faces, hidden agendas, and smoothed over edges. Their lives are not like that and they are suspicious of anyone who projects that life can or is lived in that manner. Where is life experienced for you? As you live it, share it - knowing that the Lord Jesus is shining through you no matter where you find yourself - peak or valley. You will discover a more authentic witness in your life and that the Holy Spirit is always much more apt to use a person who is "broken", humble and real.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The Annunciation and our need for the Incarnation!


I can’t say this enough during this time of year - the Annunciation is the spiritual defibrillator to an otherwise code blue time of year.

In other words, we’re all on the table, the culture and all of our lives are terminally flat-lining - the Annunciation should shock us back to reality.

Thomas Merton – in the 1960’s – was forseeing what many of us are experiencing on a day to day basis – reality of most people’s view of the world/life is one dimensional...actually a reduction of all the wonder of what God created and the power of what life actually is…

Merton wrote, “all words have become alike in our world…to say God is love is like saying eat Wheaties – no difference except that people know they are supposed to look pious when God is mentioned and not when cereal is."

Amazing isn’t it – that can't be clearer or more true than during Christmastime.

Miracles these days are reduced to diet pills, figure slimming swimsuits, wrinkle reducing lotions, garden fertilizers...did you know that close to 80 billion dollars will be spent this Xmas – we are so easily deceived aren’t we?

How can this be?

We mix the incarnation with Santa/gift giving and don’t even flinch...

If anything we live out (day by day) the proof that we haven’t bought into a different value system or worldview than anybody else – we all have a not so subtle allegiance to materialism – that stuff is all there is…we are moved more by expensive gifts and technological trinkets that by the most earth-shattering event in history of the universe. We spend more time shopping and getting all stressed out during the holidays than in quiet reflection/worship of the living God being born in a baby into our lives.

There used to be a time when Christmas meant this for alot of people – "Jesus was all you had – so essentially Jesus is all you needed"

This is not supposed to be a guilt trip but rather a call/challenge to a return to forgotten ways – for 100’s of years, people celebrated Christmas simply and the focused on the right thing – the incarnation – God’s amazing love – miracle of what God is doing in this world.

Annunciation - "Do not be afraid for you have found favor with God. And behold you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

Monday, December 7, 2009

Making sure we are having people SERVE the right "Lord"



Some of the people in my faith journey weren't too happy when I posted this cartoon on my blog. It is drawn by a man in the UK who is involved the missional movement...he has some "pointed" comments that do make me and others uncomfortable at times.

His point though is well taken...our ministry needs to insure that people are serving the right "Lord". Questions for us to consider - Who do people really serve with their time, giftedness and treasure? Who do people look to for spiritual transformation and influence? Is people's allegiance really to Jesus or to the institution?

Here are some "notes" from the training materials that I share with people in our missional project...give them a bit of thought for today!

“A Jesus fanatic is not someone who is always going to church or at meetings but rather someone in whom the Live Truth dwells” Len Sweet

a. Dualistic Discipleship = there should not be a disconnect between what we SAY we believe/who we follow and our actual ACTIONS - if Jesus IS Lord of our life that should be apparent in everything we do.

b. The Church can no longer be a "silent partner" or a deliberate purveyor of dualistic discipleship. In spite of all the talk about Christ’s Lordship, everyone knows that the expectations of the culture and the institution come first. That is the unspoken façade of much of institutional Christianity. Christ followers tend to make decisions like everyone else NOT ON THE BASIS OF THEIR SUBMISSION TO CHRIST AND HIS KINGDOM. Our ministry is to attend to people's commitment to Jesus - His will - His purposes - His leadership in our lives.

c. Following Jesus can no longer be trivialized as little more than a devotional lubricant to keep us from stripping our gears when pursuing our own lives. Following Jesus has become an exercise in “reductionism”…it has been reduced to “quiet times”, “Sunday morning worship experiences”, “committee meetings”, and religious activity separated from real living. For many, following Jesus highly privatized, spiritualized and disconnected. Modern culture still, in most cases, defines the good life.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

A Value to be embraced...

One of the core values in the Missional Ministry Project that we are initiating in our context has to do with embracing and cooperating with other people who follow Jesus and are aligned with the Kingdom of God. Instead of taking the posture of antagonism, suspicion, "us vs. them", or theological/practical arrogance, we understand that the "differences" between those of us who align ourselves with the "Lutheran brand" and all the "others" are insignificant when placed alongside of the call of Jesus to embody the Gospel in our time and in our place with love, grace, and spiritual integrity. Yes, there are differences that we can "discuss" and acknowledge when we are in conversation among ourselves evenso, as far as the culture is concerned arguments and debates among churches over who is "right/wrong" is purely "white noise". It is meaningless...in other words, our theological debates might be important to US but the world isn't listening. So, we take a stance seeing other followers of Jesus as allies in the battle...pure and simple, we find ways to understand and pray for those who are attempting to build up the Body of Christ and faithfully be ambassadors of the truth.

My friend, Dr. Scot McKnight, posted this on his blog today...it is important to know how other followers of Jesus "live" and understand their journey in the kingdom of God. You might not "agree" with everything that this has to say...actually, that's good if you don't. Understand though - as you enter into community with other followers of Jesus, that you grow...instead of being so busy pointing out that which separates us intellectually and doctrinally, we need to concentrate on our common Lord and our common passion to embody the grace, mercy and presence of Jesus in and through our lives. Not much is completely appreciated about Orthodox Christianity within those of us who are of the "protestant" bent...we need to know and understand more about these brothers and sisters. See what you think!

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Time for you to "subscribe" to the Naked Pastor


Don't freak out yet! The Naked Pastor is a pastor and artist from Canada...he is theologically trained and spiritually authentic. I've been following his blog for over two years...I've laughed, been very convicted and uncomfortable and sometimes even outraged...but that is what a good artist can do to your soul. Many of his cartoons are specifically targeted for those in ministry to consider or reconsider sacred cows. Here's a sample of his work - Naked Pastor: