Recently a friend said that the problem with our society is that we’re trying to combine the rationalist teachings of the Greco-Roman world with the teachings of Jesus. Though I appreciate the spirit of what he’s saying (the schizophrenia in our society when it comes to politics and religion) I do not believe the teachings of Jesus are irrational. In fact I believe they are more rational than many other so-called rational ideas.

Jesus taught non-violence, for example. This is certainly counter-intuitive, but that does not mean irrational. Jesus realized that to strike someone in retaliation will just provoke another retaliation from them, which of course is precisely what happens. Continue Reading…

Leadership gets really tough sometimes, no question about it. So why do we do it? Why do leaders lead? Because people need leadership. They need leaders who will sacrifice for them, who are willing to have their integrity and commitment and character questioned, who will refuse to share with them information that could hurt them or someone else, who will not act superior and play other religious games, and who will, when necessary, take their lumps when a tough call needs to be made. If leaders gave up when it got tough, we’d be doing exactly what we are trying to teach our people not to do. How will they stick it out if we turn tail and run when the heat is on? How could we ever expect them to? What right do we even have to ask someone to do what we are not willing to do ourselves?

Once in a while we see growth. Actually a great deal more often than once in a while. Someone apologizes and takes responsibility for something they did or said that was hurtful or destructive. Someone buries the hatchet and decides to keep having faith in their leader(s) even when they can’t see the full path. Someone has a difficult conversation and decides to make a relationship work when it would be far easier to run. Someone chooses not to give in to anger and frustration and suspicion, which are so rampant in society today. Indeed it often seems that the only ones considered intelligent are the cynical ones.

As for me, I will not be a cynic. Not about my people — I will have faith in their potential to grow, that who they are now is not who they will be. Not about my church — I will have faith in its place in the community. Not about my co-leaders — I will have faith in their loyalty to God, to the church, and to me. Not about my myself — I will take responsibility for mistakes I make and sins I commit, but will not question my own motives for leading. And not about God — I refuse to accept that God will not bring good things out of my pain (and the pain of others), that God does not have better things in store for us than what we see now. I will not embrace the way of the cynic who is always looking for places to exploit people, searching out weaknesses in them so as to to expose them to humiliation, demanding that people be perfect and then ridiculing those who succumb to that demand and actually try to be. I won’t play that game and will willingly frustrate and disappoint all who try to make me.

I believe in the power of good leadership to build excellent, albeit imperfect, churches that can make the most of the God-given potential of their people. I believe the local church is the hope of the world, and therefore the hope of each of us individually. I believe in the everyday people who commit to build the local church with their time and money and energies and efforts. I believe in their resiliency, in their character, and in their will to be better, even in times when they are angry and hurting and doubtful of their leaders and aren’t so sure they’re all that into the growth thing. I will not give up on them, even in times when some of them may give up on me. And on themselves.

When church leaders are called and gifted to lead, and they do that job prayerfully and with skill and dedication and courage and wisdom and love, churches grow up under them and around them that flourish. The result is lives, families, and communities that are changed for the better. I cannot imagine that a time would come, despite the hardships of ministry, where I wouldn’t want a front row seat to that. The harder things get, the less I would think about giving up. Wildwind has come a long way, and I’ve always been in. We have a long way to go, and things have not always been easy. I’m still in.

I’m still in.

What does a preacher exist for? Why are preachers needed? I believe a preacher’s calling is to boldly declare God’s Word, and how God’s Word intersects with the challenges of our lives in the present time. This means, by definition, that a preacher is always preaching partly God’s Word and partly his/her own opinion. Does this seem upsetting in some way? The fact is it cannot be any other way most of the time.

For example, Jesus said we are to love our enemies. This is not a matter of opinion, it’s what Jesus clearly said. The question is, what does that mean for us today? That’s where opinion comes in. How are we to love our enemies? Who are our enemies? More directly, what would it mean for me as an individual Christian to decide to love Muslim extremists, who have stated clearly that their goal is to see me (and you) dead? How would that affect my decisions about whether or not to join the military, to support my country in war, etc.? (Because clearly it should, the question is how). What about the church’s mandate to love its enemies? As a church, should we make statements about war and peace, about politics, etc.? Is it possible to separate the words of scripture from real-life application? I don’t believe so. Understand, I’m not answering these questions right now, just asking them. And I intentionally chose a divisive topic to illustrate my point.

If in preaching the Word of God we always find personal applications that align perfectly with the values we already have, we are not digging deeply enough. Jesus’ Words were, if anything, offensive. He offended practically everyone at some point. This did not come from his strong pro-Republican or pro-Democratic political standpoint. It came from a “Kingdom of God” standpoint. He was not sold out to any political agenda because he was able to clearly discern the limitations of politics in bringing what is most needed — change to the hearts of individual men and women. Heart-change often begins with ideas that intrude upon the mind as foreign and basically unwelcome. For example, “Repent, for you are a sinner and lost without Christ.” Very difficult to hear and take to heart.

My goal in preaching is to increasingly challenge the hearer where they live, to shake people up a little bit, but I will never shake them in ways that I have not first shaken myself. I want to hear and apply the gospel to my life in the 21st century. I want to allow its sting to revive places of apathy, fear, and stubbornness in me. I want the fact that I’m a Christ-follower to have an impact on the way I think of war and peace, of sexual politics, of educational policies, of environmental issues. I want it to pervade my whole life. I have a long way to go. The easiest thing to do is “pick a position” and cling to it no matter what. It’s much harder to remain open to the Holy Spirit and carry a commitment to living out gospel principles in every way we can. That is what Christ calls us to do, and what I am committed to asking my people to reach for.