Samaritans

They're not Jews. Just Jew-ish.

All quiet on the Northern front

Gone troppo.

Back to blogosphere next week.

Haiku Friday

Sarah has started a regular feature "Haiku Friday". This week's theme is TIME.

The Crucifixion and Zombies

Mark has suggested in the comments from my Revelation and Zombies post, another storyline for "The Bible and Zombies" series.

This time, The Crucifixion and Zombies.

Ben Pfahlert on graduation from MTS

Ben Pfahlert at the Ministry Training Strategy Graduation;

This is not really a graduation. It's a celebration of achievement, a coming of age. Tonight is more like a 21st than a passing out ceremony.

My immediate thought;

Benny, I'm not sure if you've been to many 21st's lately, but "passing out ceremony" seems a pretty accurate description.

I love Ben Pfahlert and I love the ministry training mindset.

It's a holy pyramid scheme.

Flashback

Going back to guest speak for a second time at youth group.

I just had a flashback to the first occasion, when I was preaching evangelistically on Jesus healing the paralytic in Luke 5. As I was about to start, I was momentarily distracted when amongst the fifty blokes, wheeling into the left back row was none other than a person with paraplegia. His presence wasn't off-putting, I didn't falter at all. However, as I tend to look up from my notes always at first instance to my left, which in this case was exactly where the aforementioned guy was seated, one of the leaders in their feedback to me thought I was constantly looking at him.

It's great that he got to hear about Jesus. I just hope others weren't distracted by my natural left-looking tendencies.

Thankfully God is sovereign.

Revelation and Zombies

I've never read Pride and Prejudice. But apparently a modern take on the classic tome called Pride and Prejudice and Zombies has started its own genre.

So come on then, Revelation and Zombies anyone?

Consulting the tea leaves

I am not a prophet nor the son of prophet.

I am however a plagiariser and I stole that opening from Phillip Jensen. Gazing into a crystal ball doesn't sound Christian, so instead I have consulted the tea leaves and wish to put forward a prediction for the future (whilst simultaneously wondering if that was tautology seeing I'm unsure if it is possible to predict the past).

Anyways, I digress. There is a well known adage in Christian circles that I've seen attributed to a number of sources including Don Carson, that "one generation believes a truth, the next generation assumes the truth and the third generation denies the truth." This seems an entirely logical statement to make, and from my understanding of a number of formerly evangelical organisations, it seems to be consistent with fact.

Who is the second generation? The one that doesn't preach the gospel.

But how do they become the second generation? It seems to me, that knowing the 'generations saying', doesn't immunise us from its outcome. It's also hard to recognise because it's not that they don't believe it, rather it is simply assumed. And certainly no one wants to be that second generation. So will it be me?

I have been postulating recently on the effect/affect that the increasing prevalence of online community will have on Christian truth. Without evidence, I suggest a major reason the first generation discovers or rediscovers and believes the truth is because they have to fight for it. When the truth is under attack, it forces us to be clearly defined in what we do and don't adhere to. Another baseless claim I want to make is that it appears to me, the more likely you would need to fight for these truths is dependent upon how much you are in the minority. If everyone believes the same as you, why would you need to fight for the truth? You might need to protect it by some means, but not in the same way that having to fight for the truth brings people united behind it.

So here's the rub. There are so many people on the internet that you can gather support for just about anything. Just have a look at the amount of groups on Facebook. Whether you want to find 20,000 people who hate the Roosters, People who always have to spell their names out for other people, Bug me during Grey's Anatomy and I'll insert this scalpel into your spleen, or I don't care how comfortable Croc's are, you look like a dumbass, no matter what your cup of tea as it were, no matter how obscure your personal tastes, you can find thousands of other people just like you. Complete with all your own little freaky preferences and desires.

I love the internet. I love the possibilities it presents. I love that I can communicate so easily with people on the opposite side of Australia and the world. But when I can gather a whole bunch of people who think pretty much exactly like I do, I will no longer have to fight for the truth. In fact I'll never truly feel in the minority. Even within these groups, if I don't agree, there's plenty more out there who will. The benefit of being in the minority is that it causes us to fight hard and rally behind the truth, to by godly disagreement be forced to define what we believe.

Now of course, I'll never meet someone that thinks exactly the same about everything as I do. Yet even then, this if anything magnifies the problem. We end up defining not the core (which is assumed) but instead define our agreement on peripheral matters. We will major on the minors.

The tea leaves are telling me the blessings of the online world, increase our chances of assuming the gospel.

Any true prophets wish to give a word of knowledge?

More off the record... this time on the record.

Blogger on all things interesting (and more!) Nathan, was not happy with my nothing post yesterday. So let me begin to offer some of my reflections on what I can say in relation to Mondays think tank. My thoughts are still coming together, so I welcome feedback.

On iPastor...

The idea that technology has got to such a point where we can directly beam via satellite into our homes HD video of the best preachers from across the world, is simply breathtaking. And while every step up in technology is railed against by the fuddy duddies of which I am occasionally one, nevertheless the technological march continues.

So what do we do with this technology? Generally we adapt or die. And while early-adopters have the benefit of being at the cutting edge, railers are forever playing catch up. Personally I would say this included both blogging and podcasting for me. It currently includes twitter. I was talking with my mate Paul yesterday and we agreed that neither of us thought twitter was achieving a purpose that Facebook updates didn't, and thus that is currently where both of us are drawing the line. But I'm sure that stance will change if twitter keeps its popularity.

Now, I've spoken before about my discomfort with the Mars Hill Global beam in iPastor guy to preach to local congregations. Is this another area where my initial discomfort will later be replaced by playing catch-up? Perhaps. But the realities of the global nature of relationships over the internet is still being worked out in regards to church life. Is it possible to have an online church? On the one hand, you've got people who live in isolation who either have no church to go to, or none worth going to. Online preaching and churching enables these folks to receive regular Bible input and encouragement from others.

Yet for me, this is where I think my discomfort is with Mars Hill Global. It is not an attempt to use the online world for fellowship with those who otherwise are without access. It is not an attempt to 'gather' those whose predominant relationships are conducted online. Instead as I understand, it is an attempt to meld both the regular "physical" gathering with some of the benefits of the "virtual online" world. It is equipping poorly resourced local churches with a higher level of preaching. Those that could not otherwise get as competent a preacher as Mark Driscoll (which is 99.9% of churches) can now get that benefit every week.

That Mars Hill are taking this on is admirable. It's a loving thing to do. In a lot of situations I think it would provide great benefit. And yet it is not an attempt to come to terms with the nature of online relationships (which needs further thought), but rather a melding of the two. The old and the new. A physical gathering with an online component.

We must make the best use of this technology that is available. Yet my personal view is that while further thinking needs to be done about the implications of online church, the solutions provided by Mars Hill Global in revamping the local gathering, in the long term undermines that existing older model. Seeing it is not as though no local can preach at the global campuses, they instead require someone for about ten weeks of the year.

A way forward? I am willing to admit I may end up playing catch-up on this one. While not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, the old tried and true physical gathering is still working adequately. Though the nature of people relating to others occurs increasingly online, I would suggest that the physical nature of relationships will not dwindle as much as we are tempted to think. People still need to work, people still need to eat, people still need to meet other people.

Instead I would suggest spending our energies and indeed I am working towards changing the thinking of Christians from purely reaching those within their parish boundaries who are somewhere "out there", to thinking along their relationship circles. That our evangelistic effort would be to seek to talk about Jesus with groups of people and communities that we have links with: work, education, neighbours, friends etc. But this thinking should also include those we don't currently have links with but should work towards, such as meeting other parents within schools, meeting neighbours if you don't know them, joining local sporting teams and committees. It seems to me, thinking strategically about people groups we don't have contact with will eventually include online communities as well. But this will only be understood in the wider sense of seeking to proclaim Jesus naturally as an aspect of our relationship circles.

Then again, in 5 years time I might be a professional Christian projectionist.

Tomorrow: There is a well known adage in Christian circles that "One generation believes a truth, the next generation assumes the truth and the third generation denies the truth." Why I think the internet age increases the chances of evangelicals today becoming that second generation.

Off the record

Means I'm sworn to silence... pity, we can't always call a spade a spade. What a privilege to have two of the best thinkers in Australian evangelicalism speak their minds, without fear of having to dot their i's and cross their t's in order to appease the few.

Ah, the blessing of gathering with friends...

[I'm being deliberately vague]

Days of our Lives: Wealth and Money

I've been chained to my desk for the last week preparing to preach four sermons in two weeks. What a great privilege it is to teach the word of the Lord. I'm learning so much.

A month or so back, I asked for some help with one of these sermons, a topical on wealth and money. Consequently, a big thank you to Simone for virtually writing my conclusion and helping me to think through the application of thinking about money for people in the next stage of life to myself, that is home-owners with young families.

For those interested, you can have a listen here. Feedback welcome.

You may also find the outline helpful.

Days of our Lives: Wealth and Money in Luke's Gospel.

Reading: Luke 12:13-59

Is money good or bad?

1. Understanding the Time

a. There's more to life than stuff 12:13-21

b. Don't be anxious 12:22-30

c. Instead, seek his kingdom 12:31-34

d. Understand the time 12:35-59

2. Wise Investment

a. It's the time for debts to be forgiven

b. It's the time when money deceives

c. It's the time to do good

d. It's the time to count the cost

Is money good or bad?

Bible Book in a Sentence Sunday - Joshua

Nathan says don't blog for comments. But nevertheless, a big thank you to Kutz and the mysterious Acevedo Williams for the love last week, to encourage me to continue with 'Bible Book in a Sentence Sunday'.

This week's challenge is the book of Joshua. I preached on it tonight. "45 minutes of pure gold", would not be an accurate description of the talk.

God conquers Canaan to be a land of rest.

Come on, you know you can do better.

Did the prosperity gospel cause the global financial crisis?

I have no idea. But this article seems to suggest it could possibly have been a contributing factor. Which means the answer is, probably not.

I have no idea of the validity of this report or the magazine - it could be a piece of satire for all I know. But I like the concept.

Many explanations have been offered for the housing bubble and subsequent crash: interest rates were too low; regulation failed; rising real-estate prices induced a sort of temporary insanity in America’s middle class. But there is one explanation that speaks to a lasting and fundamental shift in American culture—a shift in the American conception of divine Providence and its relationship to wealth.

A real page-curler

As you may have guessed from my post on Monday, I've recently been convicted of my unthankfulness. In fact since we've been studying Exodus all semester in small groups, so have most the staff team I work with at uni.

This from co-worker Bon the other day;

We're so unthankful. Do you know how often we complain about the weather?

It's true. I spend every season whinging about the temperature, complaining that I wish it was the opposite season. And then when the hoped for season arrives the pattern repeats. Why don't we rejoice more often in the seasons that God has fixed for our good?

Nevertheless Christians do need to master speaking about the weather if they have any hope of reaching most Australians with the news about Jesus. Most conversations start with the weather (but maybe this is affected by my years of beach mission door(tent)-knocking in stifling heat). Anyways, to assist you I've invented a new phrase. You know when it's so hot the covers of your books curl up? I anticipate a future conversation going something like this...

Me: G'day, mate

Random Dude: It's a hot one, hey?

Me: Yeah, a real page-curler.

Do you think it will work?

The Wedding Watchers

Don't ask Sarah and I for a lift to a wedding. Well, you can. And we'll probably say yes. But trust me, you don't want to be travelling in the same vehicle as the two of us when coming home from a wedding. The travel home is the chance to debrief about the day. You see, we're wedding watchers. We're wedding analysers. We're wedding deconstructionists. We havn't always been this way, picking over and discussing the most minute details of each wedding we attend. It's only since we got married ourselves. After having to make those hundreds and hundreds of large and small decisions, we have found ourselves critiquing those same decisions of others. And we love it.

Are you a wedding watcher?

Sarah and I analyse the invitations, the service books, the bible reading choices, the flowers, the dresses, the song choices, the food, the vows, the speeches, the prayers, the little flower things in the guys suit pockets; everything!

Some notable highlights of our wedding watching include seeing the combination of a Jewish/Catholic wedding (no New Testament reading there!), great exit songs for the bride and groom ('Get Down Tonight' and 'Bust a Move') and unique congregational singing (the bride and groom introduced why they chose each song, and then led the singing).

The worst vows we have ever heard was at a non-Christian family wedding. The promises finished with the disclaimer "as long as our love shall last". Of course they didn't mean it that way, it just highlighted for us that the couple didn't really understand the whole point of the wedding and the centrality of the giving of your word.

A few months ago, the Sydney Morning Herald ran an article outlining the rising popularity of civil ceremonies which now outnumber church weddings by almost double. This percentage has increased since civil ceremonies first outnumbered church weddings in 2002. Coupled with this phenomenon is a rise in the number of couples getting hitched at the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages.

I'm certain these trends are concerning to many churches (particularly those who make money off it). It is definitely a lost gospel opportunity, with most churches worth their salt insisting on some sort of pre-marriage evangelistic course. Yet at a very base level, the idea of going to the Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages to fill out the paperwork isn't an entirely unhealthy view of marriage. That is, part of the problem with wedding watchers, is that so many of the aspects of our analysis are about the fluff, the bits that don't really matter. Our wedding ceremonies are so laden with tradition - why is it a big deal what flowers you have, or what song you exit to? So much of what we discuss is about the wedding rather than the marriage. A view of marriage which strips back the padding and reduces it to signing the contract is actually a right view of marriage.

I wish to qualify that statement by saying there is benefit in many aspects of the way we do weddings. These include the giving away of the bride, the promises being publicly proclaimed, the visual representation of making these promises before God, and the congregation agreeing to support the marriage. Yet ultimately these aspects only add to the essence of the ceremony; the giving of your word to your marriage partner. It's a contract.

Unfortunately, the same article mentioned above suggests the reason for the increase in Registry marriages is due to the number of second and third marriages who want to keep things simple and costs down. Which I guess just shows they don't get it, after all.

The Levites, the land and the LORD.

I'm preaching four different sermons in the next fortnight. The mix is bizarre considering our regular diet of exegesis; two overviews, one topical and one exegetical. First up on the list is Joshua as part of a series on biblical theology.

Joshua as you may be aware is all about the conquest of the land; the destruction and takeover of Canaan (Palestine). The number twelve is an important one in the Bible and it features quite prominently in Joshua as the twelve tribes of Israel each take their portion of the promised land. Yet within the allotment of the land to each of the twelve tribes, there's a little phrase that's repeated a few times which has got me a thinkin'. What's the significance of the Levites not getting land?

Joshua 13:14 says;

To the tribe of Levi alone Moses gave no inheritance. The offerings by fire to the LORD God of Israel are their inheritance, as he said to him.

Or again in 18:7;

The Levites have no portion among you, for the priesthood of the LORD is their heritage.

That phrase in Joshua 13:14 of "as he said to him" is a reference to Numbers 18:20ff;

And the LORD said to Aaron, "You shall have no inheritance in their land, neither shall you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the people of Israel."

In my mind, this concept of the people dedicated to the work of the LORD having God himself as their inheritance is a greater thing than simply getting land. I know that the land was more than the physical component: it was the place of rest from God's enemies, the place where Israel were to be in relationship with God through the humble obedience to his word. But I do wonder if the inheritance of the Levites points to this higher purpose of the conquest. That is, of greater supremacy to the physical land is the partaking of God himself.

The end point of this logic is that we as Christians today share in the inheritance not of the physical land of Canaan, but rather the greater inheritance of the Levites by having God himself. Qualification: this is not to disparage the land and all it signifies, but that the physical land itself also points to this greater purpose.

You dig?

But is this logic Biblical? I don't know my Bible well enough to answer that question (or the time before I preach) but is this logic consistent with the New Testament? I don't know if it's implied in the priesthood of all believers, I don't know if it's there in Stephen's speech in Acts about the relative insignificance of the temple, I don't know if it's part of our understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit in bringing regeneration and unification with Jesus. I just don't know.

But do you? Help requested.

Simplici-tea

Sarah is my wife. She is a very smart woman who loves Jesus more than me. I commend to you her new blog; simplici-tea

Husband/Wife Rivalry

I guess a bit of husband/wife rivalry isn't necessarily a bad thing. But what should I make of this?

Sarah: Why did you invite me to join your blog?

Me: I think you have lots of great stuff to say.

Sarah: But why would I write on your blog when I could just start my own?

Me: Fair enough. What would you call it?

Sarah: Not sure.

Me: [Jokingly] What about 'Sarah thinks aloud'?

Sarah: Not a chance. It would only make sense to people who read your blog. What about 'Sarah thinks aloud-er'?

I'll let you all know when she gets her blog up and running because it's true, she does have lots of good stuff to say.

A history of Cumberland Uni Church through chairs #3

This is the third post in a series. #1 - Grey chairs. #2 - Orange Chairs.

A history of Cumberland Uni Church through chairs.

There is a little echo from Exodus that has been playing in my mind of late;

God rescues Israel from Egypt but they get a little thirsty...

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

The Israelites get a little hungry...

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

Moses is delayed in coming down the mountain...

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

There is great frustration in half starting a church. I would call Cumberland Uni Church a half church plant. I say this because from my perspective, while never denying the generosity of our backers, nor the commitment of the workers, there was never really a long-term view as to who was going to do the hard yards of the work.

I hope I'm not promulgating an unhelpful view of church here. I remember Gordon Cheng once preaching at Uni Church giving opposing views of what the church is like. Church is not like a bus, with the driver the sole person directing the course with the rest of the people passively sitting and following along. The church is more like an orchestra, where the conductor ensures all are playing together but it only works if each member plays their role. The model that most western churches operate under in most situations requires an employed pastor to run smoothly. Uni Church needed a conductor. We were a church plant, but we had a unique set of circumstances. We needed a vision-setter. We needed a preacher. We needed a pastor.

Instead we employed Dave.

Now please don't hear me bagging out on Dave. No one poured more into Cumberland Uni Church over the first few years than Dave Keun. And to some extent he fulfilled each of those needs. But Dave just wasn't able to conduct. He was valiantly trying to get through Bible College with a young family. While he wisely used his available time, Dave just physically couldn't keep everything working to the same beat with the time he had. What pulled us through was the DNA from St Paul's Carlingford. That is, St Paul's as a godly evangelical church with heavenly priorities transplanted to us a framework of doing church which was driven not by pure pragmatism but by the Scriptures. We simply repeated the model of congregation that our mother church had inseminated us with, which was enough to keep things ticking along. But we were a different church. A different model for St Paul's. We needed to be playing a different song. But seeing as we couldn't set our own timing we simply followed the beat of someone else. And as good as the St Paul's model of church was, it never quite clicked without a sole leader with time to invest. And believe me, this frustrated no one more than Dave.

I'm not a hypochondriac, but with Sarah and I having trained in the medical field we often talk about horrible medical issues. There's a medical condition which can arise from a stroke, called "locked-in syndrome". I'm always sceptical when someone begins a sentence with the words "this is the worst..." because what is 'the worst' is notoriously hard to quantify. Yet I'm fairly certain that locked-in syndrome would be the worst thing medically that a person would have to endure. Following a stroke, the patient remains with all their mental faculties, they're aware and conscious, yet through paralysis, they are rendered unable to communicate. Their minds remain sharp, they hear and understand, but the stroke means they can't move. I cannot imagine it. The anger at not being able to talk. The complete frustration at not even being able to write your thoughts. The exasperation of people saying things you disagree with but not being able to respond. Or the way nurses speak at you as if you were a child. Oftentimes the only movement people with locked-in syndrome have is the ability to blink. I just cannot imagine being in this predicament.

In a weird kind of way, these images seem to capture the frustration of the remaining core team at Uni Church. We could see what could be done, or even more what needed to be done. Follow-up, evangelism, pastoral care, yet with a makeshift team it felt as if none of us were able with the time we had available, to do anything about it. At times for myself it felt as if I was taking in the situation, but powerless in many ways to exert enough energy and influence to change anything, to be involved enough.

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

It became clear soon enough that as Dave moved towards the end of Bible College, Uni Church were not going to be able to employ him as a full-time minister. St Paul's could have left Uni Church to our own devices, or simply let things dwindle away to nothing. Instead they sent to us James. James Davidson was an experienced minister of one of the St Paul's morning congregations. Dave was fairly well over the moon about this development. Finally, someone who could do the hard yards of the ministry that Dave and others saw needed to be done, but were bound by time. Someone who wasn't limited to a day and a half a week. James however, had been given other instructions. He was working towards a new plant from his morning congregation. This new initiative was where the majority of his energies were to be spent. James' presence at Uni Church was as a figure head. Someone to be pastor in name, but primarily to encourage the core to do the work. In other words, James was given the same instruction as Dave was all those years earlier. Keep the doors open. And not surprisingly, again we hit our target. The doors were open.

The pattern of frustration remained. Except now not only was Dave and the core exasperated by the inability to invest the time needed to grow the church humanly speaking, but now James with just 15% of his time allocated to Uni Church was frustrated as well.

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

They say the best sight is hindsight. So with a tiring and shrinking core, a handover of leadership to an equally time poor pastor and general exhaustion setting in, what would be the wisest thing to do? I know, surely it would be a good idea to move to a new venue, which virtually tripled the workload of each member of the core. It seems so obvious. So that's exactly what we did.

As a church group we had a one-way ticket to burnout.

Leaving the grey and orange chairs behind, we were on the move again - to the local community centre. For the first time, we were in a location that was of our choosing. Unfortunately, the only facilities offered by the new building was red chairs. Thus the new location's weekly setup required a greatly increased amount of manpower (to the pure, all things are pure). At this same time, the big decrease in the number of our core began its full impact. Though positionally the new venue was great, the demands of bringing everything in every week except for the seats was fatiguing. The thing about transplanting a method of running a congregation from a larger gathering is that the number of jobs is pretty much the same. Someone needs to design and print outlines, read the Bible, lead in prayer, lead the service, do overheads, organise camps, lead small groups, lead the singing, set up the chairs, bring supper, set up supper, welcome people to church, do the follow up, greet visitors, do pastoral care, organise outreach. The handful of us did what we could, but when the move meant that as well as doing each of these things, each week we had to bring in every item we needed apart from chairs just meant by the time church kicked off at 7PM, the five or six of us were pretty well had it. We had no storage at the new venue and instead were required to store everything at our homes and then bring it with us on Sunday. Coffee cups, hot water jug, Bibles, advertising sandwich boards, music stands, overhead projector, overhead screen, lecturn, guitar amp, a piano and stand. It was harking back to the days when Uni Church began and Dave would drive to Carlingford before church (1/2 hour away) to swap cars with James Warren. They would stack as many chairs as possible into James Warren's station wagon for Dave to drive down to the school to be unloaded for the service then reloaded into the car, for Dave to drive back to Carlingford, unload the chairs and swap back cars.

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

It's good to see God has a sense of humour about the whole thing though. You see, the council wanted to trial a new electronic key to enter the building. These are expensive, so they couldn't just give us one. Instead we had to pick up the key from the council every Friday afternoon, and drop it back each Monday morning. As it happened, the two of us who were available to pick up the key, didn't have access to a vehicle. As such, twice a week one of us would have to make the 50 minute round trip on foot to the council to make sure we could get in the building come Sunday. Trials inevitably have teething problems. So in the 6 months we were there, four times we were locked out of the building. A couple of times, the keys didn't work, or there was confusion over who was meant to pick up the key. One Friday, the council decided to have a picnic day and thus were closed and unable to be contacted to get the key. It's a weird mixture of feelings that well up inside you as you stand at the darkened entrance to a community centre at 6.55 on a Sunday night, standing in close proximity to around 20 people, each of whom needed to have the situation explained as they approached. It's mainly embarrassment, mixed with frustration and a hint of anger. I guess this is partly because of the hurt to your pride. Thankfully the rented home which two of the girls from the core lived in, had a huge living area where we could all fit. I still feel for those poor visitors who came for the first time on those weeks only to be shuffled into a stranger's suburban house. Amateur hour at its finest.

It wasn't long until the mere thought of the room at the community centre would cause us labourers to heave with exhaustion and fall in a blubbering mess on the floor, crouched in the fetal position rocking gently back and forth murmuring curses about Auburn council.

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

At this point, the overall number of people started to decline slightly (25~). Actually, while I say it declined slightly, this doesn't give a true picture. The move to the red chairs halved the congregation. The 25 each week at the new venue was virtually half completely new contacts since the move. The turnover was due to the natural end of year leaving for a uni congregation, partly due to the move being an excuse for some fringe attenders to completely break free. For others who had longed for more from a church, it was as good a time as any to start shopping for a different gathering. It was never spoken aloud but for the remaining core, it really hurt to see people constantly leaving. It was especially hard when they left for lousy reasons. Even though the numbers were similar, it felt like we were shrinking, because our friends had gone. I don't think we worked as hard as we could to address the concerns of those who left. Overall though I think we were just too exhausted to care.

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

Again it is to my shame I have never been more convicted of my unthankfulness than during this period of Uni Church. Grumble, grumble, grumble. Jesus will build his church. The Christians continued to be taught the Bible to the highest degree, as a community we cared for each others as best we were able, we got to preach the gospel every week. I would suggest that there was almost never a week in which a handful of non-Christians were not present. The thirteen pioneers who by then had dwindled to three had just about exhausted all our efforts. Yet I'm still amazed that in four and a half years thus far, God had brought well over 300 people through the doors.

For all its failings, there is wisdom in keeping the doors open.

Despite all the obstacles associated with the new location, things hadn't been working at the school. All in all I'm still convinced it was the wise decision to move. The problem was, we needed to shake up how we were organising our church. But without someone dedicating time to the wider strategic thinking of the church, nor the time to implement big changes, we had simply managed to transport the same old unworkable beat from St Paul's to the school to the community centre. The chairs had changed colour, but we hadn't changed ours.

Bible Book in a Sentence Sunday - 1 Peter

Well it's been a hectic couple of weeks, but it's finally time for Bible Book in a Sentence Sunday to return. This week's (I'm still confused, Nathan) challenge is the book of 1st Peter.

1 Peter in a sentence;

As strangers on earth, be strangers to sin.

Got a better suggestion?

Classic Gordo

While reading Psalm 94;

What does this psalm teach us about Jesus? [while we are thinking] ...I'm planning at some stage to do a preaching series on Psalms about Jesus... which is really all of them... so I guess Psalm 94 would be as good a place to start as any!

'S' is for Sarah

When I began blogging a few months ago I made some occasional controversial remarks. If you look back over those posts you may disagree with this interpretation, but in my mind they were controversial. I don't have delusions of grandeur, rather there was a number of times when people leveled some deserved and undeserved criticism of my position on a few issues. It was kind of weird when after starting a blog primarily to force myself to become a reflector, people who I've never met (and in reality at the time didn't really give two hoots about*) chose to have a dig. Water off a duck's back to me, but not a great reflection on my wife. As such I chose to as best possible distance (read 'protect') her from my online musings. Thus 'S' was born.

'S' wants to come out of hiding.

'S' shall forevermore be known as Sarah.

Sarah, do you have anything you want to say?

In future, be kind to my husband.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

*One of my favourite Shaun Micallef lines is "Like a stuttering owl with laryngitis, I couldn't give two hoots."

Reflection on Bible Study this evening...

Luke 22

Questions

Would the disciples have continued to celebrate the Passover after the institution of the Lord's Supper? Was the understanding that the Lord's Supper would be a whole meal? Is it significant that Jesus says "do this in remembrance" but doesn't mention the frequency? Why did Jesus choose to break bread and not lamb (It would make for tastier Sundays)? Is it because the physical act of breaking the bread was further highlighting the breaking of his body which was about to occur? When Jesus says the Passover will be fulfilled in the Kingdom of God is he referring to after he has died and risen or when he returns again? Did Luke have in mind the film version when describing the varying lighting conditions throughout this chapter?

Comments

It's good to let the Bible speak for itself. It's hard to apply Luke 22 if you are after "practical application" if you think that 'Jesus choosing to go to the cross to die for your sin' isn't a "practical application." Verse 31 and 32 highlight that the Jeff Fenech plural for you (youse or you's) should be considered an appropriate translation. The supposed contextual inappropriateness of the apostles argument about who is the greatest isn't really that surprising. It started with finger pointing about who was going to betray Jesus and I know if that finger is pointed at me, I would soon be refuting the finger by listing off my desirable characteristics - which as I point the finger back could soon be reduced to a fight about who is greater. The big problem with Easter and Christmas (ignoring the crass commercialisation) is that it gives people the excuse to only remember Jesus death (and birth) twice a year. That Satan entered Judas doesn't excuse his behaviour. Whilst Peter ultimately denies Jesus, he still gets a bad rap. Where were the other disciples (excepting John) after Jesus was arrested? It takes balls to follow an angry mob who just arrested your leader.

Food for thought*.

*Which is actually a good sermon title if preaching on the Lord's Supper.

A history of Cumberland Uni Church through chairs #2

This is the second post in a series. #1 - Grey Chairs.

A history of Cumberland Uni Church through chairs #2

I made the comment the other day that when Marty Field approached St Paul's Anglican Church Carlingford about starting a university church, they said yes... kind of. This comment needs further clarification. Put simply the senior minister Bruce Hall and the warden's of St Paul's agreed to bankroll the new venture. The new congregation would endeavour to pay their own way, however the backing of St Paul's meant we didn't have the threat of closure hanging over our heads if we couldn't pay the bills. But lets be honest, uni students are not the wealthiest of folks (nor the most generous with what they do have). The likelihood of us supporting ourselves was somewhere between zero to none. The gospel mindedness of the St Paul's congregations to consistently reach deep into their pockets for our sake was a great act of generosity.

So why do I say they said "yes... kind of"? It's certainly not ingratitude to St Paul's. Rather knowing we couldn't pay our way it was necessary to keep costs down. This was achieved through a simple method which I like to call 'the Dave Keun philosophy'. This is also commonly known as 'threadbare staffing' or 'running the church through student ministers'. How do we get some of the benefits of paid staff without the cost? The answer: by paying someone a little to do a lot. This role was taken on by Dave. Technically he was a student minister. Practically speaking, Dave ran the church. Yet at the same time studying full time at theological college and having a young and expanding family.

Dave was given a simple role when starting out with Uni Church: "Keep the doors open." That is, make sure the doors are literally unlocked, and there's someone to preach every week. It's not exactly what I'd call aiming high, but it was a start. The end result I think was that we achieved exactly what we aimed for. The doors were kept open. Like all ministries, those involved felt frustration at not being able to do as much as they'd like. Here it was felt even more. Who was going to put in the hard yards to equip the saints for the work of mnistry?

Can a church operate without a paid minister? Absolutely. But in most contexts, this generally requires an ongoing consistent effort from a large team to share the workload. Uni Church was short in each of these areas. But we had who we had.

Our first birthday present from the school was the request (read: demand) to switch halls. A bad location became even worse. We were now even further away from anything resembling life. If we thought it wasn't possible for the school grounds to get any darker we were wrong. I can't really imagine complete darkness. It must be like one of those black holes that scientists keep talking about in space. Just a formless void sucking the existence out of anything that is drawn near. This goes some way to explaining the lighting situation outside at the new much larger and longer hall. It may sound like I'm complaining. I'm not. For $10 a week, we were getting great value for money. God was very good. But let's call a spade a spade. We were getting further away from the students, meeting in a hall that was ridiculously too big, in an unlit area of a relatively dangerous suburb, and to boot the entrance could only be located through the use of a detailed map, a compass, a team of siberian huskies and an ounce of luck by winding through a series of one way streets, a couple of which looked like you were driving to a dead end, only to discover as you approached, the continuation through a secret corner.

The move greatly affected the mood. And the seating. Even though by that stage we had grown slightly (30~) it now felt very much like we could number every one of those thirty people. The grey chairs came with us, and were complemented by some of the school's orange stackable plastic chairs.

The space was a problem. How should we sit? Do we sit at one end lengthways to physically represent by the huge void of space behind us the need to grow? Do we awkwardly cross the width of the hall so we have the appearance of fullness, yet the associated awkwardness of facing an opposite direction to the building's design thus causing the preacher to constantly battle against the distraction of colourful collages and second grade animal paper mache art decorating the walls behind him?

Yet here we were; faced with a problematic building, problematic staffing, and problematic location, what could we do? Keep preaching the scriptures. I don't want to get overly simplistic or cliched, but that's exactly what we did; we kept teaching the Bible, kept speaking about Jesus. Dave was told to keep the doors open and they were. And the most amazing thing happened. People were saved. Things may not have been ideal. Even some occasional voices from St Paul's were suggesting our closure. But people were becoming Christian and you can't argue with that. For all the struggles, individuals were putting their trust in the Lord Jesus for the forgiveness of their sin. They were committing to live with Jesus as their ruler. Cold contacts. International students. Students from country towns. Students from other states. By the preaching of the gospel they were taken out of hell and into heaven through the Lord Jesus Christ.

But despite the gospel growth, people were leaving. Sadly, many because of our size. The ironic thing was that after about two years, I counted up the people who had left because of our smallness, if they'd all stuck around we'd probably have about 40 people. But to each his own, people must serve where they feel able to serve. Of course we continued the godly spin-doctoring of "sending" and those committed to the work of the gospel in Lidcombe rather than elsewhere, kept working hard for the Lord here.

The orange seats were comfortable. But we realised if we were to halt the exodus for the sake of the gospel to local students then we needed to shake things up.

What came next was more like a gentle nudge than a shake-up.

Weaknesses

Tracey Anne Gowing has taught me many lessons in life and ministry. She is a beloved co-worker in the gospel and at the one time a valued sister and wise mother in the faith.

One of the best lessons;

You will pass your weaknesses onto the people you lead.

No doubt while she spoke these words Tracey was listing in her mind the many weaknesses of mine she is aware of. Step one was to start recognising these weaknesses within myself.

Another former student reflecting on her time at uni, spoke of a similar lesson learnt from Trace;

Tracey taught me to work to my strengths, and work hard on my weaknesses.

A history of Cumberland Uni Church through chairs #1

I try not to watch too much television. The intellectually elite amongst my friends recently got me onto The West Wing. To counter that, I'm guiltily enjoying Glee. But my favourite show at the moment has to be Grand Designs.

I'll let wikipedia fill you in on the program;

Grand Designs is a UK Channel 4 TV series covering unusual architectural house-building projects, presented by Kevin McCloud. The properties featured in the series vary wildly from homes underground to converted water towers, with the only common factor being that they are all rather unusual or extravagant in some way.

Each episode covers the construction of a single home, from first design to completed structure. The show works largely because of the host, Kevin McCloud. He is brutally honest with people about his opinion of their construction methods, philosophy of building, and analysis of the final product.

One of the big themes that comes through the series is the psychological effect of architecture on individuals. The design of a building is oftentimes a reflection on the people commissioning the building. But the reverse is also true, building dynamics influence the people that dwell inside.

I have recognised this similar phenomenon in myself over the life of Cumberland Uni Church. We're a small congregation. And to me we feel small. But we havn't always...

A history of Cumberland Uni Church through chairs #1

Cumberland Uni Church sprung to life in a small school hall in the Sydney suburb of Lidcombe. Like all births, the conception had come many months prior. And really the intricate web of relationships needed for the conception itself had started many months before that. This would be a good time to stop the pregnancy analogies before I start equating the first supper with the afterbirth.

We were only small (20~) but that was fine. The core planting team of 13 had been meeting and praying for the three months prior to prepare as best we could for the start of the plant and commit our hopes and plans to God. The location wasn't our first choice. It was quite literally on the wrong side of the (train) tracks. It was extremely dark. The toilets were in a separate building across a stretch of about 70 metres from the hall in almost pitch blackness. In order to relieve yourself you were required to grab the toilet key (it wasn't safe to keep it unlocked), a torch (it was always dark regardless of the activity of the moon), as well as a friend (for safety.) But God was very generous in providing a dry room complete with piano for only $10 per week. Despite the irregularity of the space, the price was right.

As we were meeting in a primary school, many of the school chairs were built for midgets, so Uni Church had imported about 30 regular grey chairs from the main St Paul's site. There wasn't enough people to feel like the room was full, but enough that we didn't seem empty. It was quite common for more chairs to be needed to be put out after the service had begun, if we had a particularly large number of newcomers.

The overall structure was quite simple really. Meet together on Sundays for prayer, serious study of the word of God including question time, songs of praise, and time to fellowship. Meet together in two separate smaller groups during the week for prayer, serious study of the word of God and time to fellowship. And finally, to generally have time for one another. Our goal: to bring all people under Christ, with a specific focus on students living in the local area.

From the very first week, we had non Christians joining us. We immediately had a number of first year students show up, catch the vision and stick*. And the procession of one-off and occasional visitors began. After that first year as we looked back at the statistics, over 100 people had visited. For a church of twenty people which was relatively seasonal (We'd drop to single figures outside of semester time), to average two visitors for every week of the year was a great encouragement. I am confident to say each visitor, regardless of the week they came heard the good news about Jesus.

A church was born on grey seats.

*As a side note, this group included my lovely wife S who I met at college. S had met Gloria, a ministry trainee at Cumberland who had told her to find me at college to get a lift to Uni Church. The first conversation I ever remember having with my future wife was "Are you Izaac? Can I get a lift to church?"