the drum|rob fairbanks

Galatians 6:9

posted by allie

Overwhelmed? Start with prayer.

By Holly

We have talked a lot about the importance of engaging our cities, neighborhoods and friends by living out the mission of the church in every day life. When God first opened my eyes to his Kingdom, and the immense amount of physical, relational and spiritual needs around me, I became overwhelmed. I am not one who likes to sit back and watch something happen; I want to make change and be a part of these amazing opportunities to love others well. For about two years now, I have struggled with the many passages in Scripture about meeting the needs of the poor and condemnation of the rich. I was constantly frustrated with myself as my wealth weighed heavily on my heart. I kept asking God, how do I live a life that is pleasing to you in my context of wealth, consumerism and materialism? Where do I start?

So, I started to pray. I would talk to God about my struggle to give in my context. I struggle with inequality and injustice. I began to pray for others, for Whitworth, for the city of Spokane. The prayer group I am a part of encouraged me to be honest with God and that when I completely surrender my life to Him, I will find freedom in my context. Through prayer and an honest community, I am beginning to let my  need to control everything go. I cannot control my context and I cannot change the world. God can and He is. As I continue to surrender myself every day to God, I begin to see the light and the hope that dwells within my friends, my church and in the city of Spokane. As I draw closer to God, he leads me to a life of sacrifice and service. You cannot do it on your own, so don’t even try. That kind of life only leads to frustration and heaviness. Pray this prayer daily into your life as you continue on this journey of mission.

“Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10

Cut, Bled and Dry

By Kirsten

Nobody really understands the Holy Spirit. We read about the Spirit's role in scripture, we can recognize overtly supernatural interferences in people's lives, and we get an odd feeling every now and again, which we attribute to the Spirit working through us. One of the quotes that I have clung to in class is that "We are not in the world trying to prove Christianity is true, but we are trying to show the world what it would look like if it was true." What makes Christianity what it is? The Holy Spirit. How would people even know that Christianity was true? If they saw right through people to the Spirit that dwells within them.

The Holy Spirit has many names: Spirit of God (Rom. 8:9), Spirit of the Father (Matt. 10:20), The Spirit of Truth (John 14:17), The Spirit of the Lord (Acts 8:39). But, the Spirit is more than just some supernatural force that floats around inside of people; it works very tangibly in the person of Christ and in people all throughout the world. The point I am trying to make is that the Church has been in a state of disarray basically from its beginning. Even the churches that Paul started had a lot of problems. People try to force their ministries, and they die; they try to evangelize, and it gets awkward; they try to live holy and righteous lives, but they fail, etc. They do this all, oftentimes, without asking help from God Himself, the Spirit, the indwelling Helper. If we try to go at ministry alone, especially a radical new way of ministry, coupling the idea of sodalic and modalic ministry models in churches, we are going to need help. In fact, we are going to need such overwhelming power and strength that WHEN we fall, the Church will keep moving forward to the reconciliation at the end of all things.

This Church body thing that people are inevitably a part of as Christians, whether put together or broken,  is the art work of the Spirit of God. He is what empowers, heals, teaches, intercedes, fills, leads, and brings new life. If we try to do ministry without asking, we are going to bleed ourselves dry. We can only run so far without being filled again by the Spirit. If left to our own strength, our bodies would wear and die. But, with God living IN US, we can do ALL things. Ask for the Spirit, trust the Spirit, rely on and rest in the Spirit. Dwell with the King of Kings, and live again.

The Great Divide

By Laura

Race is not an issue that can be ignored, especially not by the Church- the people of God called to make disciples of every nation. In his article “The Color of Faith,” David Van Blema remarks on the gravity of the situation: “In an age of mixed-race malls, mixed-race pop-music charts and, yes, a mixed-race President, the church divide seems increasingly peculiar. It is troubling, even scandalous, that our most intimate public gatherings-and those most safely beyond the law's reach-remain color-coded,” (26). God sends the Church into the world to be His image-bearers, living out the unity, peace, and love that exemplifies life in Christ. In order for the church to begin living out its missional identity, it must realize the ways it has been affected by racial segregation and take a biblical approach to embracing reconciliation and oneness in the body of Christ. 

Throughout the New Testament, Jesus came proclaiming that the Kingdom of God is here. We are living in the tension between the redemptive act of Christ on the cross and the reconciliation of all things to God when Jesus comes again and the world is made new. As Christians, we are to live into the present truth of the Kingdom and join in the redemptive work of Christ here and now. In Revelations 7:9-10, we are given a picture of what the body of Christ will look like after the Second Coming when all is made right: “There...was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb,” (NIV). 

This is the true picture of the Kingdom of God as it was meant to be- diverse, colorful, and unified. This is the beautiful future that God calls us to live into now. David Campbell, a professor at Notre Dame, advocates, “If tens of millions of Americans start sharing faith across racial boundaries, it could be one of the final steps transcending race as our great divider,” (Van Blema, 27). The Church has a great role to play.

Is the Church too strong?

By Jeff

I cannot help but wonder if our churches have become too muscular?  Have our churches become immobilized due to overwhelming attendance and the resulting church politics? Is it possible to grow die hard disciples out of a large church? Special Forces soldiers and Rangers are rarely stacked with muscle and yet they are the most effective soldiers in the field. Should we strive to build congregations so full of Christians that they are impressive on the exterior due to mass but rendered ineffective by the very same characteristic that we find impressive?

 

Special Forces soldiers and Rangers are not stacked with muscle for a reason. Too much muscle hinders agility and speed, thus making them a slower target. It seems that we as the Church have placed too much value on well attended services (just as athletes can become obsessed with numbers numerically representing their performance) that we have created congregations that cannot run the race of missions. Unfortunately, since the church has supported the numbers game, the congregants have followed suit. We now have vast amounts of congregants who have overloaded their lives with things that seem to be positive (like muscle) but leave them unable to walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death unless they make some serious sacrifices before they begin their march through the Valley.  We as a church have packed on so much ‘muscle’ that we cannot quickly adapt to the changing currents in the ocean in which we swim.

 

We must become more like Special Forces soldiers or Rangers, we need to cut the excessive muscle and re-gain our agility to navigate through this rapidly changing world.

Marriage and Mission

By Caitlin

If you have ever been to a small Christian college, or know someone who has, then you have probably heard the term “ring before spring.” And it is unusual to find an unmarried seni or pastor at any church. I’ve found that the Christian Church in America definitely emphasizes the importance and sacredness of marriage. Considering that we live in a culture obsessed with sex, this emphasis is probably a good thing. After all, Paul does say in 1 Corinthians  7:9 that “it is better to marry than to burn with passion.”

However, I do wonder if the pressure to find a husband/wife can distract from living out God’s mission. I know many people who, when considering the potential of another for dating or marriage, really only consider whether or not they claim to be a Christian, and if they have chemistry. Both of those are important, but I don’t think it should stop there. Many of  my friends seem to look for that “special someone” first, and consider how they can live out God’s mission afterward. 

We had a group of really wonderful people come into class to talk about living missionally, and two of them were a young married couple who run an organization called Global Neighborhood, which helps refugees from other countries adjust to life in the United States. Both of them had given up everything to follow Christ’s call for their lives, and he blessed them with one another. But I started to think, what if one of them hadn’t listened to this call? Would that have stopped them both from living out Christ’s mission, or just changed the way they do that?

Like almost any other twenty-year-old woman, of course I want to get married at some point. But people look at me strangely when I say, “I’d be okay if I stay single my whole life. ” Especially in the last couple of years, I’ve felt God calling me to the dark places, to work with broken people. I do not really want the American Dream. However, I could see myself being easily swayed and pulled away from following this call if I started considering a significant other’s desires or needs foremost. I think that God plans for some people to serve him as singles, and some as married couples. Why is this such a unheard-of concept to so many Christian college students today?

Tim Tebow: Separation of Church and Life

By Peter

Well I figure that I might as well go ahead and write about the most provocative figures in the country today even though I know more than enough has been said about him already and much more is sure to come.  I just can’t get over how polarizing he is and how obsessed the media has been in creating and fueling the never-ending debates we see or hear about everywhere we go.  Everyone seems to have been sucked into it.  Last week at church the topic was prayer and images we associate with it.  Of course the picture of you-know-who was in there.  More than 42 million people watched Sunday’s game and there were over 9,000 tweets per second about it during and after the game ended.  People are now growing weary of the ridiculous attention he has been getting and wish that there could just be a separation of church and game. 

While I agree that all the commotion is getting a bit overwhelming, I can’t help but be amazed at how this simple act of public prayer and attributing everything he does to God has stirred up this attention.  There are plenty of athletes out there who pray and speak about their faith publicly but for some reason this guy is different.  I’m sure there are plenty of other reasons, namely the actual job he does and the exciting finishes that somehow keep happening. 

A lot of people might criticize him for praying ‘on the street corner’ and being too public about his faith but when Jesus criticized the Pharisees for this it was for being hypocritical and for doing it just to gain attention.  I can’t say for sure that all the attention isn’t perpetuating him further but I do know that he had this faith and prayer habits before getting all the national attention and that his behavior off the field backs up what he is preaching.  (If you are curious you should read Rick Reilly’s recent article about what happens after every game).  I also know that in our culture we really like to separate our work from our play and especially from our religion or faith.  Everything has its place.  Well here we have on the nation’s stage a guy who refuses to categorize his life but lets his faith form his identity, no matter how much criticism he gets for it.

Wrestling with God

By Corey

As of late, my favorite story from Scripture is found in Genesis 32. Jacob is beginning to make his way back to Esau to ask for forgiveness. The story continues on when Jacob is left alone at night and “a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day” (Genesis 32:24 ESV). As morning arrives the man tells Jacob to stop wrestling but Jacob holds on and will not let go of the man. And as we know, Jacob is blessed, his name is changed to Israel and his life delivered.

            I love this passage because it demonstrates two aspects of faith. First, it shows that it is okay to wrestle with God. I think this is a crucial part of faith, which is often avoided as often as possible. However, I know from my own experience that I grow the most when I am struggling or confused with what God is doing in my life. I further see this in our class, Missional Church. Take for instance the four pastors that came in and talked with us. One of the things that I saw in common between the four was that they all got to where they are through trials and times of questioning. Colby had been stopped from going to China two times and the other three all had really discouraging experiences with the Church. Through these struggles, it became clear that each one was grateful for what they had gone through because it brought them closer to Jesus. 

            The second idea that is demonstrated in this passage is that in order to wrestle with certain ideas one needs to be determined to stay faithful and find the answer. For me, this idea resonates more firmly because anyone can struggle or doubt, but it takes faith and determination to work through that struggle. I am most amazed at how Jacob held onto the man fighting him and demand that he blessed. This is what I want to do; I want to hold on to God so that I can bless others through God’s blessing on me.

Enough Sitting Around, Do It

By Nathan

I have been listening my entire life. In classes, to other people, in Sunday school and church, I have always been a listener. I have received numerous blessings from this skill and have learned many things. Without listening I wouldn't be who I am today, but for really the first time in my life, I want to do more than listen.

 Listening to the speakers that have come into our class, all of them are making changes in their communities and slowly changing the way church has been practiced for decades, for the better. I see these people that are filled with the Holy Spirit both listening to the Lord and living out the way God intended us to. These pastors are living their faith and have shown the way of Jesus through their words AND their actions.

I have been thinking and praying about what God wants me to do vocationally with my life to honor him. One would think that I already have this planned out since I am going to college and getting my degree, and at one point I thought I knew what to do, but either I didn’t think I was listening to what God had in store for me to do or I wasn’t ready to do what he wanted me to do.

In class we got the opportunity to hear from Bryan Dormaier, a church planter in Portland. During the conversation we talked about the struggles of situations in which we communicate our faith and someone mentioned that they have grown the most in their faith through putting themselves in uncomfortable situations, such as talking with people that you might never talk with - something I would never do. That’s something I aim to change by LISTENING to God and ACTING on it.

The Kingdom Ethic

By Brendan

“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, ‘Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce. ‘Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters…and multiply there and do not decrease. ‘Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf; for in its welfare (Shalom) you will have welfare (Shalom).’” – Jeremiah 29:4-7

This prophetic passage from Jeremiah is one of the more difficult passages of scripture for us to wrestle with. Ultimately God has brought the Israelites into slavery under the pagan Babylonian Kingdom, not exactly what the Israelites had in mind of a “promise land.” I can only imagine what this must have been like, here you are “God’s chosen nation” brought into slavery to this pagan Kingdom. Going from a prominent Kingdom and a particular way of life in Jerusalem to captivity within Babylon. Many people are uncomfortable with change and most hate it when even the smallest wrench gets thrown into their plans. Just imagine being uprooted and transferred to an entirely different city, into an entirely different culture, having to re-establish yourself and formulate a new way of life; not something people generally get excited about (especially later in life). But this is what the Israelites experience, and then on top of that it was God who led them into exile. God uproots them and calls them to live among a pagan people. Strange, or is it?

God calls them to establish themselves and carry on with life as they know how. He calls them to build homes, take wives and multiply, and seek the Shalom of the city. Now, if I were in the Israelites shoes I can imagine myself not super thrilled with this turn-of-events, but as an outsider looking back on this amazing story we can truly see the Kingdom at work. This is God’s calling for us to as well. We are sojourners in our own nation and culture, a people of God called to bring his Shalom to our cities even if we do not “feel a call” to any particular place, Jesus has called us in essence to build houses, take spouses and multiply, pray for those around us, and make disciples as we are living. As we are faithful to this call we will experience the Kingdom.