Intangibles

This week I have been in a series of meetings discussing trends in ministry. Throughout the discussions I kept coming back to matters that I believe are critical and important, but often overlooked. I am afraid that all too often churches can get caught up in the latest trends and best practices and miss the heart of our work.

I entitled this blog intangibles, not because these matters are unimportant, but because they are often overlooked. Here are a few of the issues that I believe are critical to effective local work.

Put an emphasis on prayer. While I was in Africa I got in deep discussion of small groups. I often felt alone in defending congregations who have not yet moved to small groups. I found it interesting that the entire time we were in Nigeria I did not see one small group meet (some churches were small groups, but that was another matter). What I did see was a commitment to prayer. Every morning the church doors opened between 5:00 - 6:00 am for the congregation to come together to pray. It was moving and powerful to see the people of God joined in this act of faith and fellowship.

Restore a passion for Bible study. Like most people in ministry I love books. It is not uncommon to read a couple of new books a week, but a few years ago a group of men encouraged me to study my Bible daily. I am reminded of what V.P. Black told me years ago. He said, "Son, you preach what you are full of." The things you read and study will come out in your preaching and teaching. If that is the case, and I believe it is, then the Bible needs to be the first and most important book in my library.

Get engaged in the lives of others. We change our environment and the world around us - one person at a time. We were created to fellowship and interact with others. Allow your life to touch someone elses. Open your heart to the needs of others. Share your tragedies and triumphs with a world traveling blindly through the night.

Projects, programs and proceedures are all good and necessary to effective and efficient work, but lets not forget the important matters that add depth and substance to our faith.

Groupthink

This week I was introduced to the Abilene Paradox. The story goes something like this. A family was sitting on the porch playing dominoes when granddad says, "How about we all head out to that little diner in Abilene." His wife says, "sounds good." Despite having reservations because it was a hot day and a 53 mile drive the son says, "O.K., count me in."

Four hours later they arrive back home after a hot drive and a mediocre lunch. The daughter-in law who had been silent says, "Wasn't a very good trip was it." The son then says, "I really didn't want to go to Abilene," and the grandmother says, "I only went because I thought everyone else wanted to go." Finally, the granddad says, "Well, I only suggested it because everyone looked so bored."

Groupthink is the phenomenon of social conformity that plays out when we don't want to be in conflict with what we believe is the group consensus. How often have you seen people try to use groupthink to influence decisions makers. "There are a lot of people who feel the way I do," or "Nobody is going to support that decision..."

God gave us minds and intellect and expects us to use them. We do not have to be disagreeable, or contentious to express a differing opinion. There is real value in open debate and having a dissenting opinion. Even our Supreme Court justices publish the dissenting opinions in a judgment or ruling.

I have a friend who serves on the board of a well-known college. I asked him why he was selected to serve. His answer revealed something very healthy about that institution. "I was selected because I am not afraid to hold a contrary opinion, or to express it if I think the group is wrong.

For far too long our society has preached a doctrine of conformity that has encouraged moral compromise and social decay. Take a minute and make sure your backbone is not made out of rubber, or that your mind isn't so open that your brains fall out. Stand up for what you believe in and have the courage to share those convictions with the world.

By the way, I was thinking of going to Abilene, anyone want to join me?

A Thorny Situation

Conditions and circumstances in life are never quite what you want them to be. Many people add to thier own unhappiness because they believe the grass is greener in another pasture. They walk through life always thinking life would be better if only... If only I had more money; If only my husband treated me better; If only I could fit into the clothes I wore ten years ago.

I believe this is a universal condition. Even the apostle Paul struggled with this his infirmities. Three times he prayed that God would remove the thorn in his flesh (II Corinthians 12:7-8). Paul believed that life would be better, that his circumstances would be more productive if only he could get rid of that stubborn problem in his life.

We don't always enjoy the way God works. Many of the lessons we learn come through hardships and adversity. I don't know how many times I have prayed that some challenge or difficulty will be removed, only to have God say, "my grace is sufficient for you" (II Corinthians 12:9).

God perfects us the same way that gold is refined in the fire. We must walk through the furnace of affliction if we are to come out pure, brilliant and ready for use in God's service. Paul put it best when he said, "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (II Corinthians 12:18-19).

Tomorrow

Anne of Green Gables was one of my mother's favorite mini-series. I think the thing I truly enjoyed about it was the eternal optimism of Anne. No matter what mischief she seemed to find, her wonderful philosophy of life shined through. "Tomorrow is fresh and new with no mistakes in it."

When I look in the rear view mirror of my life, there are lots things that I would do differently given the chance. I am not sure I share the sentiments of the person who says, "I wouldn't do a single thing differently, because it has made me the man I am today." I now understand that had I done a few things differently I could have been a better father, husband, leader, employee and a better representative of God's kingdom. While I can't change the past - I certainly can learn from it.

The good news is, tomorrow is fresh and new with no mistakes in it. Now that may all change by 5:30 in the morning, but for the moment I prefer to put on my rose colored glasses and plan for the best. As David reminds us, "This is the day which the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it" (Psalms 118:24).

Time is a precious commodity. I prefer not to squander it! Tomorrow I might lose my job, wreck my car, or discover I have cancer. Most of those things I have little control over. I can worry about the weather, the economy, or the war in Iraq, but that would rob me of my joy. I could worry about all those things, but why should I allow the future to rob me of the present. For the moment I choose to be happy, I choose to love God and my family, I choose to believe in what is good, noble, and honorable in this world.

What does this all have to do with ministry? I am not sure, except I believe that God created us to love life and love our fellow man. I believe when we hold up our heads, expect the best and walk uprightly with God that others are drawn to that. They want to know what is different about us. My disposition clearly affects my ability to effectively minister to others.

Ministry & Money

This is probably one of the more delicate topics related to faith-based institutions. Every good work needs money to operate, but it often creates a moral dilemma for those seeking financial support. I have been involved in fundraising efforts since entering the mission field in 1988. During that time, I have seen all of the good and bad that comes from with dealing with money. Let’s look at a few important facts surrounding Ministry & Money.

Giving, Tithing, and Stewardship are all important Biblical topics. Some authors have indicated that money is talked about more than any other topic. I don’t know if that is true, but the Word has a lot to say about it. I don’t want to use this column to preach a sermon, so here are my observations.

Faith or Works: I have sat in board meetings where Executive Directors have emphasized the importance of trusting God and the money will come to the exclusion of getting out and asking. I have seen board members so concerned about the bottom line that they forget to include God in their calculations. What is the balance between stepping out in faith and being a responsible steward? I don’t know that there is a clear-cut answer, but the simplest way I know to explain it, is to pray as if everything depended on God and work as if everything depended on you. Make sure it is God’s voice you hear calling you to step out in faith and not your own arrogance or Messiah complex.

Money & Power Corrupts. This is the greatest challenge I have seen on the mission field. We are so eager to help we place large sums of money in the hands of those inexperienced in handling it. They will see more money in a week than they have seen in a lifetime and it can corrupt local workers who were at one time good men. American diplomacy has failed because we have created an international welfare program. In too many cases, the church has done the same thing.

Finally, never sacrifice your mission to chase dollars. I have seen too many organizations change their vision, mission and values because they believed that the money they would receive justified the move. A well-meaning individual may promise $500, 000 if you will build a clinic in Honduras, or sponsor students in Ukraine. If those works fall under the umbrella of your mission great, if not help steer them to the organization that can fulfill their mission. I have seen dozens of faith-based organizations who lost their vision, then lost their zeal. They chased dollars, rather than pursuing souls and sought financial increases rather than striving to expand the kingdom.

I believe that God requires us to manage money in our personal lives and in our ministries for a series of reasons: 1) It requires us to exercise stewardship; 2) It demonstrates our ability to walk with integrity; 3) and it reminds us that “every good and perfect gift comes from the Father of lights…”

The Great Experiment

Democracy is often called the great experiment. Some very learned men took the best of ancient and modern political systems and tried to build on a foundation of morality and Christian principles to build "one nation under God."

When I look back at the early work of the Spring Meadows Church of Christ, I see some similarities. I wouldn't venture to say that those of us involved had the wisdom or education that many of our founding fathers had, but it was a great experiment in this regard. There were decades of "church experiences," that played a role in what we tried to accomplish at Spring Meadows. Most of us had experienced periods of wonderful congregational growth and the tragedy of division and discouragement. We took those experiences into consideration as we planned.

As we drafted our by-laws, talked about our services and prayed about reaching the community of Spring Hill with the gospel of Christ, we were very intentional in the things that we did. Most of us understood that every step we took set a precident for the future. We did not want to establish human laws that were irrevocable and we wanted to insure that we preached the whole counsel of God. To date our experiment seems to be a success. I do however have some questions I would like your help with:

1) Can you take the lessons learned in a new church plant and implement them in an existing congregation? (i.e. How do you bring about positive change in a struggling work?)
2) As we grow, how do we avoid falling into unproductive patterns?

I believe that most works (new or established) have two fundemental challenges: 1) Not allowing standard practices to become unchangable traditions; 2) In an effort to stay fresh, not chasing every new trend and philosophy that comes down the pike. That takes deliberate prayer and planning. I am not sure what all the answers are, but I would love to hear from the readers about how to bring energy and enthusiasm into an existing work that is struggling and how to keep a good work on track.

A couple of quick items:
1) Please forward this blog to others for response.
2) Please leave your thoughts on the blog for others to see, or if you prefer for them not to be public, please send them to me at trent.wheeler@charter.net

The Battleground State

I am as disappointed this morning as I have been in any election. I have strong political leanings and I prayed fervently during this election. Last night as I watched the election I thought about the "battleground states." When Ohio was called for Obama I struggled, when Florida fell my heart sank.

Despite my disappointment I woke up this morning thinking about the real battleground state. As children of God we are not battling over Ohio, Pennsylvania or Florida, we are battling over the hearts of men. We are fighting that battle one person at a time. I realized this morning that I spent two years living under a socialist government; I have worked in regions where I have been accompanied by armed military guards hired to protect me and slept in villages where the worst kind of abject poverty was evident. In all of those situations God's people not only survived, they endured, the persevered and grew.

Many today are discouraged. We are concerned about the life of the unborn, about gay rights and homosexual marriage and the socialist slant of the incoming administration. Please, please remember that God's people have the unique ability to excel in the most adverse of situations (Daniel in Babylon; Joseph in Egypt, Christians in Rome). God was honored and exalted under the most brutal and despotic nations our world has ever known.

Some of us woke up thinking, "we lost the election." Last night Florida and Arizona passed legislation stating that marriage is between a man and a woman. Arkansas also sent a blow to the gay rights movement by banning unmarried couples from adoption or being foster parents. Prior to this election 27 states had already passed gay marriage bans and today we await the outcome in California (update: California has also banned gay marriage).

I am reminded of how discouraged Elijah was after fleeing from Jezebel. God reminded Elijah that 7,000 still had not bowed to Baal. There are many who are still fighting the good fight, who oppose moral evils and stand for godly principles. No government, regime or political power can rob from you your faith, your principles and your commitment to stand for Christ and honor his high and holy name.