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ALL THE PEOPLE! YOU ARE INVITED TO A NEW EXPERIENCE OF ASSOCIATION AND CHURCH! I am so excited to share this opportunity for unique worship, exploration of who we are as the United Church of Christ in the 21st Century and a bountiful offering of leadership training workshops. As I have been working with and among you these past several year, my vision of what the “Association” in the UCC is about. Thankfully, our FVA leadership have shared that vision and, with it, the development of our new Committee on the Church. This group of super volunteers have taken that vision and run with it to create this special Fall Association Educational Meeting. What is the vision: that we (FVA) are here to not only authorize and support our pastors and ministers – but also our congregations in these challenging times. And so this Fall Meeting is the first fruits of their labors: an offering of practical “how to” workshops for church leaders. We hope that this will be the first of a yearly offering (not to replace the Fall Meeting with high level presenters as we have had in the past) to provide such training and fellowship as new leaders emerge in our congregations. This event is NOT just for the clergy and your congregation’s delegates – it is for ALL church leaders and others interested in learning, resources and developing new skills in the ministry of all the people. My deepest thanks to the Committee for their hard (and quick!) work to develop this project. At the meeting, you will also hear more of their plans for year-round support as we build sub-committees to focus on: Caring for the Church (Council visitations – not to ask for more OCWM! – and foster relationships among congregations), Church Vitality (vitality consultants, shepherds for new & reviving congregations, and assistance during the critical Interim and transitional times), Resource and Training (Resources and training for the local church & her leaders), and Association Meeting Planning. If YOU are interested and willing to serve on any of these sub-committees: sign up at the meeting. See you there!
So – what’s happened to Starbucks – and, for that matter, the Church?
O.K. I’m not a coffee drinker. But I noticed with interest the rise in Starbucks – and now their sudden announcement of closing down a fair number of their locations – with interest. What is it that Starbucks provided which drew so much interest and business? Well, certainly coffee – but not just regular old coffee. Rather they took pride in the freshness of their coffee – beans which were not ground until just that very day to provide the best of flavor in all its many varieties. And it offered comfort, a sense of community where you went in, got your cup and sat down over the morning paper or wireless laptop or simply got to know the people who had developed the same schedule as you. Quiet, peaceful, fun. Then Starbucks became big business. They stopped grinding their coffee at the local shop and trucked in the various mixes. You could even buy pre-packaged coffee to make at home. Then coffee in all it’s multiple forms wasn’t the only thing they offered. Starbucks music? Worse of all, they cut a hole in the side of the building and put in drive-throughs! Freshness, a place to get away from “it all” where “everyone knows your name” – all gone. They lost their center. At the beginning of the Church and at every reformation & revival, our apostles and forebearers were very clear about their mission and their center: to make disciples of Jesus Christ and to create communities of mutual support, accountability and ministry. Still, as time has gone on, over and over the local – and wider - church has become caught up in the trappings of being an institution: buildings and finances, what kind of music is appropriate and appealing, what new programs would be fun and, worst of all, how can we make ourselves comfortable….. Perhaps the greatest challenge for the Church in the 21st Century is re-claiming our true center and mission which are true to Jesus and the early church. Have we placed our primary attention upon creating disciples and serving community – or somewhere else? Recently I had lunch with David Russell, our pastor in Lake Zurich, who shared with me his experience of visiting Church of The Savior in Washington D.C. And he boiled down their focus on this center into a “three legged stool”, neither leg more important than the other. Those legs consist of: 1. Constant development of the individual’s spiritual life toward the deepest level possible through worship, prayer, Bible study, etc. 2. Creating and maintaining the church community as one of both support and accountability 3. Reaching beyond self and community to the world in mission “to the least of these” and sharing the Gospel. Surely it couldn’t be as simple as that? Yet, even the briefest of surveys of the book of Acts and the history of the Church at her finest shows that it wasn’t fancy buildings or elaborate shows that were most effective or faithful. It was focus upon the center and doing these simple “legs” in a manner which best communicated to that generation. Thanks David – for sharing with me – and now with us all!
God’s Blessings, Grace & Peace, Jonathan |