I was attending a conference in Minneapolis and had some time to kill. So I decided I would go by a nearby shopping mall and walk around. It was the middle of a workday and the place was pretty much empty. I happened by the Food Court and saw a man about my age sitting at a table reading a Bible. “Interesting”, I thought. As I got closer, I noticed he had a very puzzled look on his face, so I asked, “Got a question?” The flood gates opened. He was reading Revelation and he had a ton of questions. Fortunately, I had just completed a study course on Revelation with Bruce Metzger (the lead editor for the translation committee of the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible.) I was in luck, I knew a little about the subject. We talked for about an hour after which he asked me one final question, “Why hasn’t my minister told me this before?” To which I quipped, “Because they’re too smart to get trapped like I just did.” Perhaps you’ve had an opportunity to talk to someone about the Bible or religion in general. I’m not convinced I was really trapped on that afternoon talking about the Bible. I think I was at the right place at the right time to help someone who was really struggling. Maybe I made a difference. I’ll never know, but deep down, I felt good about it. Are you sharing your faith whenever you can? I’m sure there’s plenty of opportunities if you’ll just take a chance. You know more than you think. How about sharing it? This Sunday is Earth Stewardship Sunday. The usual reaction to this announcement is, “Oh no. The tree-huggers are going haywire today.” And to a degree, the accusation is accurate. Some can go overboard in trying to preserve every last thing on Earth. In reality, trying to preserve everything is just as mistaken as trying to waste everything.
Earth Stewardship Sunday should be about one thing: Good Stewardship. God has given us a bounteous gift - a whole universe for us to use. But… we need to use it wisely. Don’t waste it, but use it nonetheless. Good Stewardship is about using what God has given to its fullest while ensuring it’s available for the person who follows. For example, take this church building. Use it, but make sure it’s maintained so that someone else can use it. But more importantly, make sure the building is fully used so space isn’t wasted. This is where many congregations trip up. They’re fully committed to having the building and maintaining it, but by golly, no one else can use it! When that happens, a clear message is sent: this church is not a good steward. And that’s a bad image to have. As the church moves forward into its future, how can this building be fully utilized? Countryside has a beautiful building and it’s a waste of resources to let it sit empty. What can the church do to be a better steward? I was working with a couple that said they loved each other very much, but were thinking about a divorce. “OK”, I said, “Write down the top five things that drive you nuts and we’ll go from there.” On each of their lists was an item simply stated as “toilet paper.” This I had to hear about. Apparently, one wanted the toilet paper to roll out from the top and the other wanted the paper to roll out from the bottom. “She’s got to do it my way”, said the husband, “I have to win this.” Thus we had the problem. Both of them had to “win.” In doing so, they both were losing. Sometimes in the church we get to a point where a person feels we have to do something because it’s the right thing to do. At least from that person’s point of view. When it gets to a point where the person has to “win” and the other person has to “lose”, then the relationship breaks down and the church suffers. Because what is the “loser” going to do? They’re going to try and “win” the next one – or – they’re going to make statements like, “I’m never going back there again!” When that happens, everyone loses. Like the couple, the church needs to find a solution where both sides “win.” (In the case of the couple, the toilet paper runs one way in one bathroom and the other way in the other bathroom.) When people talk and reach a solution together – or at least something both can live with – then the church grows stronger and everyone wins. The Apostle Paul writes, “Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth.” Words for all of us to live by. In the 50’s and 60’s, many churches enjoyed unprecedented growth and attendance. In those days, most churches like this one followed a very simple process: people who believed like we do and would behave like we do could belong to our church. Otherwise, they needed to find another church. Today, the process is much different. In fact, the process is almost the opposite. People are coming into our church and belonging who do not believe like we do, nor do they behave like us. Churches that are holding fast to the old process are dying. Churches that embrace people of various beliefs and behaviors are surviving (and in some cases growing.)
One crucial step in making your church a vital church is toleration. I said to the Board before I was called that there are some people in every congregation who need a sign hung around their neck that says, “Extra grace required.” No matter how small the church, there’s always at least one person and everyone else needs to understand and be tolerant. When I think of the critical need for toleration, I am reminded of the parable of the lost sheep. The shepherd leaves the ninety-nine to seek out the one. My guess is the one was the sheep that said something off the wall and the ninety-nine pushed him out. We can’t afford to push people out. So we need to be like the Good Shepherd and seek out the one (the one that made some ridiculous comment or did something crazy) and bring them into the fold. If we don’t, then we need to prepare to close the church – because it’s going to die. |
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This blog consists of reflections written by the minister each week for the Sunday bulletin. We hope that you enjoy the musings! Archives
January 2020
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