What about . . .? Conversations among Clergy

Colleagues,

Clergy gatherings among are some of my favorite times of the month. Conversations can get rich quickly as devoted servant-leaders tell stories of struggles and breakthroughs in personal, family, congregation and community. Today, several of us in the central part of the area grazed on grapes and donut holes and bandied about the question, "How do we relate to Mormons - especially in communities where they are becoming a significant influence?" "Do we embrace them as full partners in a Christian ministerial alliance?" "Do we challenge their claims to be Christ-followers in union with the historic Church?"

Questions like these are not rhetorical or merely theological whimsy. They now draw considerable pastoral time and energy (in some places more than in others.) What do you say to a member of your church who, having been treated kindly by a local Mormon, now doubts their salvation or that of the dearly departed?

Beyond pastoral concerns, such questions raise other issues that linger always in the background. "Who is a Christian?" "Who gets to decide that for everyone?" "How do we relate to people whom we judge to threaten the orthodoxy of the Church?" "What in me gets 'hooked' whenever I am engaged in these controversial conversations?" What is the proper balance between justice and compassion?"

You can imagine that we did not find mutually agreeable, easy solutions. What I did find, however, was an integrity among us that I could trust. There is value in conversations that are open, honest, vulnerable to the Spirit's influence and passionate. What makes them even more valuable is that they take place within the assurance of a covenant. We commit to being here for each other. We allow for the fact that most transformation (even that which is fully directed by Christ) may take years for most of us . We challenge each other's conclusions but not those deep convictions forged over decades by prayer, Bible study, worship, and mission. We clamber up the mountain together to a teachable height, knowing that we cannot live here long but we will each return soon to the more congested and separated valleys of service and leadership.

I like to think that we go back to work together, that we have each other's back, that we care a bit more about each other each time we gather and return. The Great Commission and Great Commandment were, thank you Jesus, entrusted not to a few but to all the early Christ-followers and to us.

May we continue to invest in each other and into the missions we share in common - particularly the mission to make disciples of all nations.

Any Interest in Coaching, Clergy?

I invite you to visit www.thecolumbiapartnership.org and learn a bit about what is offered there.

I just enjoyed a long conversation with Dick Hamm (whose latest book, Recreating the Church, is a real ray of sunshine in uncertain times). He is interested in working with us and I'm interested in the area's helping to subsidize at least part of the expense for up to 5 pastors to enjoy monthly telephone coaching sessions with Dick - former General Minister and President of the DOC from 1993-2003 and now consultant for TCP and executive administrator for Christian Churches Together.

What I need from you is some indications of interest. Care to comment? (see below)
Bill R-H

General Assembly 07

The 2007 General Assembly in Fort Worth is now history. For those who were tracking resolutions, all were passed.

Strong messages from Jill Wallis (Soujourners), Alan Roxburgh (Allelon) and Bill Lee (DOC moderator) got the attention of many who attended.

The missional theme is being picked up by more Disciples. The learning track for Congregational Transformation was attended by about 200 people.

I brought back several keynotes from the National Evangelism Workshop that are on DVD. We'll be posting titles when I return to the office on Tuesday.

The work before us all is clearer: we need to create contexts in which a passion for mission in the community can flourish and spiritual preparation is likely to happen. Many congregations may be further along than they realize and perhaps we can help with that.

Evangelism and Missional Church

I'm writing from Fort Worth where we concluded the National Evangelism Workshop and are about to begin the General Assembly of the Christian Church (DOC).

What struck me most about the keynotes and workshops is how clearly leaders call for Christ-followers to:

• Become people with our own powerful (and credible) stories of being saved by Christ)
• Get invested into the communities where the gospel story is foreign
• Grow relationships with the "Samaritans" of our age
• Reclaim the high priority that Jesus gave to multiplying disciples

I will bring back several DVD and book resources that you can borrow - not to tell you how to do evangelism - but to help kick-start fruitful reflection and action with your leaders.

In the coming weeks I will begin to address each of the points above and invite us to engage in conversation as colleagues. We've just got to become more faithful and effective evangelists - every one of us. Many are depending on us, including the One who entrusted us with the mission.

Bill

A Plan For the Future

With conversations about missional church well underway, what can we expect to do together over the next several months?

Difficult as it may seem for action-oriented, results-driven leaders, we will spend a good deal of the next few months praying and working on our spiritual disciplines and conditioning.

We will also submit several grant requests to major foundations in hopes of funding education and research events for many congregational leaders in the area. We believe that by expanding the circle of people meeting cutting-edge leaders around the country, we are more likely to get the desired results.

Other focus areas will include more encounters with our communities in the form of large-scale, short-term projects and learning the art of Christ-centered conversation among us.

What would YOU recommend we be about as we strive to serve those of you who are equipping and inspiring new disciples?

Lessons in Missing the Boat

With the slow and subtle collapse of local community and thinning volunteerism, you'd think the local church would be throwing everything it has into this window of unprecedented opportunity. If disciples of Jesus know how to do anything, it is to call community into being and to equip, organize and lead volunteer teams.

We're letting this opportunity slip, too. We're still focused inwardly except when we occasionally dip our collective toes into real mission.

For the first time in recent memory, local and regional emergency service planners and providers are ready to welcome leadership from local religious communities. Safety and security are front-burner in the national psyche.

Send me an email and I'll attach a PDF proposal we are working on in Cameron to take advantage of this. The plan is easily adaptable to any community.

On Roles and Relationships

How did it happen that over time we stopped being a tighly knit band of adventurous disciples and drifted into membership of religious corporations led by paid professionals?

Recent and decent histories of the Church in North America abound these days. I won't attempt to address the "How?" question here.

I'd rather focus on how to recover that sense of adventure and purpose, the collegiality and high mutual regard we all once enjoyed at some time on our pilgrim journey with Christ.

If you are reading this, you already have more than a passing interest in the quality and efficacy of your discipleship. Do you also have more than an occasional twinge of longing for connection with disciples who really believe that living the good news was the intent all along of our hearing it?

I'd like to propose a Fifth Sunday reunion of disciples of Jesus to meet, pray, study and be studied by a few of the more challenging texts from the Word, to share table fellowship and renew our sense of individual and corporate focus.

Who's interested?

Bill