Plan 'Be'

Check out http://wecan.be. Excellent teaching on the beattitudes. They point out that Christians are always wanting to post the 10 commandments everywhere, but never the beattitudes, though they came out of the mouth of Jesus. Not knocking the big 10, mind you, but maybe it would be cool to make a really big deal out of the beattitudes. The following is copied from http://wecan.be (who got it from the Bible). 1. Blessed are the poor - or poor in spirit – who do not trust in status or riches 2. Blessed are those who mourn – who grieve over the injustice in the world 3. Blessed are the meek – who get angry but who never get aggressive 4. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness - who seek justice 5. Blessed are the merciful – who are compassionate to everyone in need 6. Blessed are the pure in heart – who are whole-hearted in desire to do right 7. Blessed are the peacemakers – who work for peace in a world at war 8. Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness - who suffer for just causes

Suffering, caring and apathy

My friend just told me that his wife might die. Its worse than that, but I'll leave the details out for his sake and yours. I'm frustrated that he and his family have to struggle to get by. He's a hard worker but they've been hit hard by the economy and by circumstances and then his wife got sick... where is the church? Why have I not been there more for them? I'm very frustrated. They need material help, and we gave them a bit. They need more. She needs healing. I'm so mad and frustrated. Mad that we're not able to do more materially. More mad that we can't fix her. We can and will cry out to God for mercy and that's it. But why am I not more mad and frustrated than I am? The situation certainly warrants it. Why are we not all jumping up and down screaming about the injustice of my friend's suffering and how much everyone needs to help? And come to think of it, why are we not screaming about the people next door who are hurting and the others down the street who are having such a rough time, and not too far away is the hospital where they're hurting and dying, and the jail and the nursing home and the...mall. Its so easy to look the other way. Its almost like we have to in order to survive. There's unbearable suffering within a stone's throw, but we're going shopping. I can't help everyone. But I'll tell you something...I'm going to be there for my friend. And I'm sorry that I've looked the other way.

Texting and community-A New Generation of Pew Sitters

The room was dark except for whatever emanated from the stage lights. It seemed smoky but it wasn’t. About 50 young people had gathered for the indie rock show our church sponsors, as we do many weekends. There’s no real stage, only a ‘stage area’, distinguishable by a carpet that elevates the performers a good half-inch above their audience. Most of the audience was standing in front of the ‘stage,’ gathered in a semi-circle. The first ‘row’ was an arms length from the lead singer. And a half-inch below. Some in the audience swayed to and fro, moved by the music. Most just stood casually by, a stance that somehow seemed to communicate as much of a positive response to the music as the swaying. And then there was a third group. Along the walls of the room there are two old church pews that represent both a nod to and a departure from the generations of the faithful that had come before us. This night the pew closest to me was filled with young bottoms. About 5 or 6 young men and women in their teens or early twenties. Each held a cell phone whose light shown dimly on their faces. They were, well, texting. There they were, sitting together, communicating, but not with each other. (Unless, of course they were texting each other, which is a possibility, considering the decibel level in the room.) The generation illustrated by these 5-6 youthful butts in a pew is not the future church. They ARE the church. And those of us who are older and whose thumbs lack the agility to text must take note. We must listen to them and understand. We must not write them off because their world is different than ours…because they are different. We are quick shake our heads and say that they are not experiencing ‘real community’ because they are not truly present in the here and now. If they cannot give their full attention to the one sitting next to them, they’re missing an opportunity for relationship. If they are more attuned to the one they are texting than the one they’re with, then something is wrong. And if we said that we would have a valid point. But before we do, lets look a bit closer. First of all, they chose physical proximity. The pew-sitters didn’t isolate themselves in order to begin texting. They found other butts to sit with. Other texting butts, but butts nonetheless. They could have instead found a corner where they could have been ‘alone’ with their texting buddy, but they didn’t. They didn’t consider it rude or antisocial for their fellow pew-mates to be communicating with who-knows-who. They didn’t find that it cheapened the moment or the relationship with those in present company. They were together, sharing the same space, breathing the same air. They were enjoying a social and perhaps a spiritual event in the same time and space, and thus they were together in a real way. Is it not sometimes enough to just sit together in the presence of your friend, your lover, your Lord? Is silence among us always a sign of disconnect? No, it is being uncomfortable with the silence that more assuredly indicates a lack of connection. And perhaps the moment was important enough to them that they felt the need to expand the circle beyond who was actually physically present. Perhaps the reason for their behavior was different than we imagine…perhaps they texted not because being present was lacking or because they were bored. Maybe it was because they could not tolerate keeping the moment all to themselves. Maybe the circle of fellowship was larger because those sitting on the pews held their phones before them, thumbs moving at lightning speed, faces aglow. Or maybe they were texting about donuts, hated the band and could barely tolerate being in the same room with the others. Thoughts?

A New Beginning-The Open Church

Our church meeting Sunday was...ummm....different. If you've visited CrossBridge before you're probably thinking to yourself, "Duh. THIS Sunday was different." Well, it was different, even for us. And no, we didn't dress up and sing hymns. But we did put all the chairs in a circle and have a conversation together about how we at CrossBridge need to go further, deeper, more radically different from church-as-normal. Just because we are accepting of how people dress, what they drink and that we have cool music and a smoke break doesn't mean we're any closer to church life as described in the New Testament. We must hold on to what we've got, but grow in relationship, prayer and spontaneity. We talked about the early church and how each member came not to receive but to give. We talked about how they were free to share and pray for others as they felt led, without worrying about interrupting the sermon. And we didn't just talk about it. We prayed for some hurting people, and some folks shared the good things God has done for them. And it was beautiful. And exciting. And different, even for us. There will be more of this. We have started a new adventure as a church. We are starting a journey and Sunday was only the first couple steps. We've dug up an out of print book called "The Open Church" and are passing it around. If are a part of CrossBridge and you'd like to receive a copy to borrow or have, please let me know.

Frank Viola and the Experiement

Frank Viola is a name I've known for a long time. I love his contribution to the house church movement, of which I am an avid fan. I've followed this movement for many years and consider myself on the fringes of it, even though at CrossBridge we are holding primarily public meetings at present. Frank is a prolific writer and is one of the names most associated with the house church movement. He has a passion to see the practices of the early church be once again embraced. So do I. CrossBridge, though only about 2 years old needs some tweeking. I've said numerous times that public meetings are an experiment that we're trying and we'll see how it goes. The experiment is to see if we can have an experience of authentic church life and public meetings as well. Can we live in relationship with one another and have a public presence? Can we also recruit the troops and pool the resources in order to make a difference in the world? Can the two co-exist? Here's how its going: We have grown from about 10 people meeting in our home in early '07 to about 20 people meeting in St. Andrews Civic Club in late '07 and '08 to about 50 people meeting at our rented facility in the Lincoln Center now in '09. Numerical growth is happening. We're moving about 300 boxes of food a month through Angel Food Ministries. We've seen some lives changed and some people walking with Jesus who were not before coming to CrossBridge. We've been able to give away about 25 cars to needy folks. We've done well about showing the love of God to the world. We have a great worship team and great worship. (Truly unbelievable for a church our size!) We are quick to love and slow to judge. We have great conversations. But... Someone told me today that they feel disconnected...that back when we were smaller and met in the St.Andrews Civic Club it felt more like a family. We all knew each other. We ate together most Sundays. It was more intimate. We've lost something as we've grown. Its easy now to come to church and go home without really talking to anyone. Its easy to get in and out. Get your church fix, and not connect with anyone. And as we continue to grow it will become even easier. But the irony is that its becoming less and less 'church.' Because church happens in relationship. Church happens when people pray for one another, laugh and cry together. When they bear each other's burdens. When they are involved in each other's lives. We've gotta get that back and there's only one way to do it. We've got to experience church life beyond Sundays from 10-12. We've got to build this thing on relationships. And we've got to do this no matter the cost. This means....(drumroll)....meeting in homes. Period. This is not about Dave wanting everyone to join a homegroup. This is about being the church. Its the fabric of who we are. If its not the fabric of who you are then you should prayerfully consider if CrossBridge is the place for you or not. When Frank's office sent an e-mail that he is coming I responded immediately, hoping, but thinking that it was a long shot. CrossBridge is a small church and doesn't have money to bring in big name speakers. But Frank accepted our invitation. This speaks highly of Frank, his heart and his approach to ministry. He's not driven by numbers or big money. He's like Jesus that way. I'm excited about Frank coming because I believe that his message is timely for us. I believe that he has something to say to CrossBridge at this time. And I believe that this whole thing is being orchestrated by our Father. So be prepared, CrossBridge. God is up to something.