Awakenings

Christianese – Part 1

Awakenings

October 3, 2012

We’ve all seen the drama performances – you know the ones – where Jesus is seen on one side of the stage and the poor human is on the other side of the stage, reaching and striving to get to Jesus, but all the distractions of life and temptations keep taking the human down. We see Jesus struggling to try to get closer to the human and as the music crescendos, Jesus finally wins and the person gets to Him, with all the demons and distractions of life dead and gone around them. This kind of drama performance is very powerful – but also very flawed.

Then there are the songs that refer to Jesus waiting for us to come spend time with Him, as if He’s this insecure Being waiting in the corner of our living room, longing for us to just pause and spend time with Him. And if we miss it, He’ll still be waiting there for us, hoping we’ll one day stop and come and meet with Him. And as we go out on our day, he’ll be waiting in that “old familiar place”, wanting to spend some time with us…and if our day goes badly it’s cuz we left Jesus at home and ran out the door.

“I really want to get closer to God…” We hear this phrase a lot. And songs or drama performances and other illustrations supports this mentality. This phrase, which summarizes the underlying message of some of these songs and dramas, is an example of Christianese. Christianese, according to the Urban Dictionary, is “A communicable language within the Christian subculture with words and phrases created, redefined, and / or patented that applies only to the Christian sphere of influence.” Christianese. Words or phrases used, usually by those who go to church or claim to follow God, that others don’t understand. Here’s an example given from the Urban Dictionary of what Christianese might sound like:

“Christian: Brother, I felt like I was really backsliding, so I crucified my old man and put on my new man, and now the fruit of the spirit is evident in my life!
Non-Christian: What the hell did you just say? You speakin’ Christianese?”

Christianese. I would argue that many times a “Christian” may not even understand what they are saying, and how the phrases used may be quite flawed when really analyzed. I believe the phrase “getting closer to God” is an example of Christianese, even among Christians.

First of all, don’t get me wrong: maybe these types of dramas, songs and other illustrations have opened our eyes to God in a way that we never have experienced. Maybe they have given us a glimpse of our condition if there was no God. But they also hint of a false concept that God is far away and I have to really overcome all this stuff in my life to finally “get close to God.” It’s as if the Sacred is off somewhere waiting for us to be enlightened that we need him, and show our proof that we want Him, and then He’ll fight for us, as long as we fight for Him. Really? Is that what God is like? Doesn’t that image actually give more power to me? Let me explain more.

It’s all about a name. Emmanuel. Emmanuel was the name given to Jesus. (See Matthew 1:23). And it means “God with us.”

God WITH us.

Not waiting for us. Not hoping we’ll “get closer.” (How can you get closer when you’re already with?) Not pulling some imaginary rope at the proverbial other end of the stage. God is WITH us. Emmanuel.

Which at first seems weird. Really? God is with us? God is WITH me? Right now? But I don’t see Him. I don’t feel Him. What about all the “bad” stuff I’ve done lately? I need to do something to get closer to Him. He’s disappointed in me. As soon as I overcome this one issue, then I’ll finally get closer to God… And the list could go on. At times I think we expect more from ourselves than we do from God.

And really, what does it really mean to “get closer to God” ? Just sit with that statement for a minute. “Get Closer to God.” There’s something wrong with it. The emphasis is placed on me. The action is placed on me. The phrase itself puts God in a place of inactive disappointment waiting for me to make my move.

But Emmanuel, God WITH me, God with you, God WITH us, is different. Suddenly, I am not fighting my battles alone. Suddenly I am not having to overcome an obstacle to get closer to God – God is WITH me overcoming the obstacles in my life. It’s about TOGETHER.

So some may say, “Yes but sin separates us from God and so we have to overcome these types of obstacles to get closer to God.” Part of that is true. But most of that is wrong. Does sin separate us from God? And if so, what is sin? And what exactly does the separating? (Perhaps these are more examples of Christianese 🙂 ) Let’s say that we were to agree that “sin separates us from God” – which makes Emmanuel that much more powerful because THAT’S WHY GOD HAD TO COME AND BE EMMANUEL TO US. We can’t overcome these obstacles on our own. If in fact sin separates us, and sin lives in me, I can’t stop sinning apart from a higher power, therefore I need Emmanuel – God with me – God in me. We need the power of WITH to make it happen.

In fact, I would say that because God’s name is Emmanuel – God with us – perhaps sin at its root is really being unaware of His name. Perhaps it’s the fact that I try to be my own emmanuel. Perhaps sin is me trying to get closer to God, when all along God is already right here, right now, right next to me, – in fact, right WITH me. And perhaps sin is the fact that I am blind to that truth. Which then results in behaviors that others might refer to as “sins” – and the greatest sin being self-righteousness and pride – when it’s just the natural result of me trying to do what only God can do, and is trying to do in me right now. Perhaps it’s time we stopped trying to be God and let God just BE with us and in us.

What if this became our prayer: “God, I know You are already here. Make us aware of Your presence. Open our eyes and our ears to see you and to hear you. Open our minds to your movements all around us. We acknowledge Your presence…” The emphasis is off of us, and on the Sacred. God is already here – and here is wherever you are. God WITH us – Emmanuel.

Going back to the drama illustration, what if the drama would like this: Jesus and the human are together. The obstacles of life and the temptations still arise and come to the human, but Jesus is right there with them, fighting their battles with them. The obstacles don’t always disappear, but the human is not alone. They are not trying to “get closer to God” because God is already with them and in them. Even when they are not aware of it. They are together on this journey called life. They are together through the ups and downs. Whether the human is aware of it or not, He’s still there, cuz it’s his name – Emmanuel – God with us.

Ears Wide Open

Awakenings

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September 24, 2012

He stood against the wall, wearing jeans and a long-sleeve t-shirt. A baseball cap covered his hair and hid his identity from most of the crowd. He pulled out the prized possession from its case and began to fill the metro station with the sounds of beauty and magic – the sounds of music.

Joshua Bell, one of the most famous violinists, played for the next 43 minutes during morning rush hour in Washington D.C.’s Metro. 1,097 people rushed past during that time, with only a few stopping to listen for a moment. The night before, Bell had played to a sold-out crowd where some of the seats went for $100 or more per person.

The few who stopped to listen? Mostly children noticed the music right away and tried to pull on their mother’s hands to stop and listen, only to be yanked on in the mad rush of the morning’s schedule and routine. A man, who was running ahead of schedule, noticed the music. Not one who usually listens to classical pieces, but rather enjoys rock’ n’ roll, this was out of character for him. When interviewed later as to why he stopped, he mentioned there was just something about the sound of the music. It was peaceful. He checked his watch, and noticing he was ahead of schedule by a few minutes, stopped and listened and soaked in the presence of peace.

Bell, who opened his violin case to take donations, only made $32.17 in 43 minutes – yes some gave pennies. No one recognized who he was except for one woman who had seen him play before. She stopped and stood, front row for her own private concert of one of the world’s greatest violinists, and took in each morsel of the moment. She commented on the experience by saying, “It was the most astonishing thing I’ve ever seen in Washington. Joshua Bell was standing there playing at rush hour, and people were not stopping, and not even looking, and some were flipping quarters at him! Quarters! I wouldn’t do that to anybody. I was thinking, Omigosh, what kind of a city do I live in that this could happen?”

Why was Joshua Bell even playing in the Metro? Well, this was an experiment done by the Washington Post. (You can read about the experiment HERE.) The experiment was to see how many people would stop and listen and slow down. There was a hidden camera in the Metro taking in the entire thing. Check it out in this short 2-minute recapture of the experiment:

The music is all around us all the time. Can you hear it? It comes in different ways. Do we have time for beauty? Are we aware of the Sacred that is dancing all around us, calling out to us, summoning us from our busy, hectic lives? Are we annoyed when our schedules are interrupted? Are our ears open to the call of the miraculous in the mundane?

Perhaps we would recognize the sound of the Sacred calling to us if we just slowed down, stopped, opened our ears and gave the world permission to speak into our routine. Perhaps it’s time we put away our cellphones, our calendars, our ear plugs, just for a moment. Perhaps it’s time we hush and be still. Then we would be aware and know that God is present, right here, right now. In this moment. The music is playing all around us – do you hear it?

(To read about the experiment from the Washington Post, go to http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/04/AR2007040401721.html)

What if the Church – Part 4

Awakenings

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September 18, 2012

Outside my window one afternoon, while grading papers and doing other work, I overheard two young men talking about girls. But this just wasn’t any conversation! One guy was telling the other all the things he had to do exactly right to ask a certain girl out. It was great advice, really! I was pretty impressed. They discussed at length whether or not to include 1 chocolate kiss or 3 chocolate kisses or a whole bag in the gift that he would give her as he asked her out. (They finally agreed on 3). They talked about where to place the blanket, and under which tree. They even talked at length about how fresh the flowers needed to be. It was amazing to hear the detailed plan of action, the careful noting of everything, and all the ways of how not to be misunderstood and how to avoid intentions from being misleading. Overhearing the whole thing actually revived any faith I may have lost in the male population of youth these days. 😉

But it also got me thinking: Will he go through with it? He has to, after all that conversation and planning, etc. And I’m sure he will. But the thing that got me thinking about was the fact of when was the last time we actually took the next move when it comes to Church? We do a lot of talking! We talk at length about how Jesus loves everyone. We talk about how we should treat the “least of these.” We talk about how we are the body of Christ. We talk about how Jesus is coming back soon. We talk about how following God is the only Way, the only Truth, and the only Life. We talk about Bible stories and how they apply to our lives. We talk about how to live as Christians in this day and age. And the list could go on.

But when was the last time we LIVED it OUT? When was the last time we actually made the move? When was the last time we loved the least of these? When was the last time we sold our possessions? When was the last time we reached out a healing hand? When was the last time we put our words into action? Actually lived out what we say we will do and who we say we are? When was the last time we stopped worrying about what everyone will say or think and actually became radical in the way we loved others and ourselves, thus showing our love for God? Why are we waiting so much? And for what?

What if the church got off its butt and actually started BEING church in every place, to every person, etc. that it found? What if the move for love actually took place and went beyond the lips of mere talk and what if the songs became a dance that was the pulse of every moment of every day instead of some praise song or hymn sung once a week? What if our very breathes and lives, even the mundane moments, were the sermon of the revolution of LOVE that the world is waiting to witness? What if we stopped daydreaming about a someday and actuated that dream into a living reality TODAY? What if the church stopped bickering and pointing fingers and complaining about all the things wrong with others and started BEING the answers to the things that they claim are missing?

But right here is the problem: I need to stop asking “what if the Church” and start asking “what if you?” and “what if I?” Really: “What if We?”

Because that is what the church is. It’s human. It’s you. It’s me. It’s us. It’s not some foreign institution run by religious half-human nitwits (although most prefer to think of it this way so that there is always someone else to blame and therefore we are not accountable). The “church” is not this power that is waiting for us to just pay a little more tithe and then it may listen to our ideas. WE…YOU and ME… US…We are the Church! The reason that it’s not being what it was meant to be? The reason is you…the reason is me. It’s time we stopped pointing fingers. It’s time we stopped blaming conservatives or liberals or conferences or pastors or presidents. It’s time we start BEING who we are! It’s time we made the next move for LOVE.

Because if it’s really love, it can’t help but make a move.

I think about the start of that young love I witnessed recently and the careful planning for the next move…I hope it works out for him. The blanket is waiting. The flowers have grown and were set out on the counter. A bag of chocolate kisses rests on the shelf and will be bought soon. A nervous and excited teenage boy will ask a blushing and thrilled girl to be his girlfriend.

And the world waits for the Church…waits for you and me… to make our move and take the mere talk to the next level….

WHAT IF WE…?

“Stop complaining about the church you’ve experienced and start being the church you dream of.” – Shaine Claiborne

What if the Church – Part 3

Awakenings

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September 12, 2012

There was a strange feel in the hot summer breeze – the kind of essence that brings goose bumps to your skin even in the heat of August. There we were, in Memphis, TN to see some of the sights. This was little over a month ago. We thought it would be cool to swing by this famous city and experience a bit of it ourselves. One of the places we went to was the National Civil Rights Museum, which is the old location of the Lorraine Hotel, the place where Martin Luther King was assassinated. My husband, brother and I decided to travel from Union Street on foot to the museum. The day was hot and muggy, as you can imagine the south in the summer. The journey on foot took us about 20 minutes. As we approached the block where the Lorraine Hotel is, the air suddenly felt different.

As we rounded the old brick wall, and spotted the front of the Lorraine Hotel, it was as if time stopped. There was the front of the hotel, still in its 60’s décor, with two replicas of the cars Martin Luther King and his crew traveled in. Looking up above you could see room 306, with a wreath of fresh flowers hanging on the hotel bannister in front of the place that Martin Luther King had breathed his last breath. It felt like sacred ground. We paused in that moment, sitting on some grass in the parking lot, and had a few moments of silence. We hadn’t even entered the museum yet, and already the place pinged a resonance in my heart and soul of the commemoration of this incredible human. This man, Martin Luther King, who had the audacity that a human being can indeed change the world. The moment was potently powerful and brought tears to all of our eyes.

There is a plaque that overlooks the parking lot, that reads as follows:

What has become of his dream? So much! Yet so much is waiting to be realized. I couldn’t help but wonder what if Martin Luther King had not been assassinated? What would he have continued to challenge us to change? What part of society would he want us to use our voice and agility to change?

It’s interesting to note that two things he was raising his voice against right before his untimely death was the Vietnam War and Poverty in the South and other places in our country. The idea seemed to be that to follow justice and civil rights for all, must include all areas, especially the poverty within this nation. His idea seemed to be that if I don’t help my brothers and sisters who are in need right next to me, how can I call myself a follower of the gospel of Jesus Christ?

What if the Church took up this cry? Don’t get me wrong, the church at large has done so many things to help out humanity. But we seem at times to get to the point of a plateau, adopting the mindset that others will take up “the cause” and it’s just not our calling. But isn’t it our calling? If we’ve been rescued from the poverty of human hopelessness because of the blood of Jesus, isn’t this the mission we then extend to every person we come in contact with? It may not look the same as everyone else, because we do have callings and gifts. But shouldn’t these gifts extend to wherever we find ourselves?

Here are some statistics for you in regard to what we can do here and now to help relieve poverty in the world. These statistics are quoted from the book The Hole in Our Gospel, written by Richard Stearns, the President of World Vision. Most of the stats have been taken from different surveys that were done in different years. If there is a specific year that this survey was taken, that year will be included below. If there is no year mentioned, the stat is an average for a regular year. I think you may be surprised at how “easy” it really is to help alleviate poverty right here, right now:

$168 Billion

-the extra money available if all American churchgoers tithed

(which sounds like a ton! But check out these further numbers:)

$705 billion

-the approximate amount Americans spend on Entertainment and recreation in a year

(Kind of makes us look like we are more powerful than we realized!)

$179 Billion

-Amount spent by teenagers ages 12-17 (2006)

$65 Billion

-Amount spent on jewelry in 2008

$39.5 Billion

-total U.S.-government foreign assistance budget for the world

$58 Billion

-the amount spent on state lottery tickets (according to 2007 survey)

$31 Billion

-the amount spent on pets

$13 Billion

-the amount spent by Americans on cosmetic surgery (2007)

$5 Billion

-total Overseas ministries income to 700 Protestant mission agencies, including denominational, interdominational, and independent agencies.

$65 Billion (the same amount spent on jewelry in a year)

-amount needed to eliminate extreme poverty on the planet for more than a billion people

$6 billion (half of what is spent on cosmetic surgery)

-amount would bring universal primary education for children

$9 Billion

-the amount it would take to bring clean water to most of the world’s poor

$13 Billion (same as is spent on cosmetic surgery in the U.S.)

-the amount to be able to provide basic health and nutrition for EVERONE in the world

$5.2 Trillion

-the total yearly income of American churchgoers

(it would take just a little over 1 percent of the income of American Christians to lift the poorest one billion people in the world out of extreme poverty. U.S. Christians, who make up 5% of the church worldwide, control half of the global Christian wealth)

(The Hole in Our Gospel, pg. 218)

It’s that easy. Even teenagers could do it!

But some have said, “Is it really about money that much? Isn’t it more about my heart and my time?” Absolutely! However, in my opinion, it goes a step further. I vote with my dollar. I am owned by what I buy to a certain extent. I only pay for that which I believe in, that which I need or that which I want. And what I use my money for is what I end up cherishing and protecting. Jesus put it this way: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21). Money is the tool I use to cast my vote of where my heart is. Money is a necessity for living on this planet – yes. It is also the tool to help alleviate pain and suffering around me.

This topic of money can be a touchy one. It can make people feel guilty, or feel controlled…which perhaps proves that money indeed has a hold on us more than we realize. And many times, people ask: “Well, I don’t know where to even start! There’s so much need…” and it’s true – it can seem overwhelming. The best place to start is asking ourselves this: What do I really need? And what do I merely want? (For some ideas on where to start, check out my post “A Lifestyle of Love but Where to Start?“. Also, I’ll be including more ideas in some later posts. In the meantime, get creative! You know more than you realize.)

What if the Church helped take up the cause that Martin Luther King was just beginning to expose and actually started doing what we can do right here and right now for those who need it the most? But wasn’t this all exposed before Martin Luther King ever came on the scene? So then, what if the church actually continued to DO what Jesus Christ Himself started here on this planet? He started the revolution when He spoke these words at the beginning of His ministry:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released,
that the blind will see,
that the oppressed will be set free,
and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.” (Luke 4:18, 19)

What if the church continued that revolution not just in word and speaking of a someday, somewhere, but actually lived out what it means to be the body of Christ on this earth right now? What if tithes and offerings were to go beyond just paying for pastors – what if they were to actually pay for the alleviation of poverty and suffering on this planet? That’s what the early church did. In Acts 2 we’re told ^“Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common,and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need….” (Acts 2:44, 45). The revolution has already been started. The need is overwhelming. Jesus is waiting for us in the form of the least of these. What are we waiting for?

I will end this segment of this subject with this amazing quote from Martin Luther King’s Letter From a Birmingham Jail:

“The contemporary church is so often a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound. It is so often
the arch supporter of the status quo. Far from being disturbed by the presence of the church, the power structure of the average community is consoled by the church’s often vocal sanction of things as they are.
But the judgment of God is upon the church as never before. If the church of today does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authentic ring, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century…”

– Martin Luther King, Jr – Letter from a Birmingham Jail

What if the Church – Part 2

Awakenings

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August 25, 2012

It’s funny when you ask some people, “what is the church?” and they may answer that it’s “the building that’s down the road with the steeple on it.” Some people will answer that it’s a group of people who “follow God” (whatever that means) and who like to wear t-shirts and bumper stickers to let everyone know that they “follow God” (kinda sounds like a political party to me). Other people believe that those who go to church are the Republicans. Or maybe it’s the cheesy Jesus people who always have an answer for everything, seem to wear a perma-smile, and have Christian music playing 24/7. Others may say it’s the people who can use the Bible to defend everything they do and say (which, by the way, is pretty easy to do, so beware).

But what is the church? Is it really that easy to define? What if it’s really not about a place or a title…what if it’s a movement? What if the church is not a building? What if it’s not a set of dogmatic, human-made beliefs? What if it’s a Spirit-led intangible presence that pervades whomever will accept it? What if the church is honesty? What if the church are people who are tired of religious zealots who claim to know God? What if the church are those that, because of the truth that speaks within them, cannot darken a “church” door any longer because of the religious games? What if the church is a culture of people who are tired of depending on mankind for their deliverance, who are tired of playing the political game of who is more “right” than the other, and who are ready to answer and grapple with the real questions of life? What if the church are those who choose to say “no” to selfishness cloaked in religion? Which brings up the question: Who are the real “pagans?” In fact, what if some who choose not to go to church, actually enter into the movement or culture of what church really is because it’s not happening at church?

Now before you grow all concerned on me, hear me out. I think these things are possible in a church building. I’m not saying that people shouldn’t go to church. But I think we way too many times jump to conclusions and put people in a box and label them a certain way, when maybe they are still spiritual even though they are not in religious church attendance. In fact, why do some people go to church?

For some, it’s a place where you wear your “Sabbath best” and perform for others. You can get a title, an office. In some churches, it can get really nasty around nominating time. People chomp at the bit to get voted in a certain office, as if it were high school class officer election time. Their self-worth and identity can become wrapped up in that church position. Sounds like a political party.

For some, church is a place where they can feel secure in their answers. No questions please. And if someone asks a hard one, they have the list of Bible verses and Ellen White quotes to silence the squirming doubts, to level the playing field – to keep the boat from rocking too much. Too many saints pat each other on the back for being right, when in reality, perhaps the right thing sometimes is to just listen.

For some, the church is a place to show up to, get “fed”, don’t feel any responsibility to contribute anything, and sneak away. Those who use church in this way are disappointed if the music is not their type, or grumble if the program was “not good” – as if the service was a movie that they now feel entitled to critique.

And for some, the church is a place to encounter God or grow in their understanding of the Sacred. They understand that God is not contained only within the walls of the church building, but that He is living within all of us and that He shows up all the time, if only we would recognize it.

In fact, when you think about it, what if the church was meant to rock our boats? What if the church was meant to be “out-side-the-box”? What if the church is you? What if the church is me? What if the church is raw honesty? What if the church is looking suffering in the eyes and giving it permission to grieve? What if the church is a good belly laugh? Or a chat with friends in a coffee shop? What if the church is having the honesty to say “I don’t know…” …and it’s ok.

What if, in reality, the Church is a movement? A culture? A lifestyle? And how do you gauge that kind of church attendance? Exactly!

Now, once again, I’m not saying don’t go to church. In all reality, churches need people who are living a radical lifestyle of love, justice, honesty, transparency and realness. However, many of these people who are in essence being the church, many times get kicked out of church because some churches care more about preservation than movement. Jesus got kicked out of His church. The man healed that had been born blind got kicked out of his church (John 9). Martin Luther got kicked out of his church. And the list could go on. The point is, just because someone does not go to church does not mean that they are not a part of the true church – the church, or culture of love, honesty, truth and justice. The followers of the Sacred. (Speaking of church attendance, these people just don’t go to church once a week, they LIVE church every moment of every day. Because they fight to see through eyes that discern the Sacred in every moment – even the seemingly mundane.)

In fact, what if this movement – this movement of love, justice, and honesty – this movement of following The Sacred – is happening both within the church and outside the church? What if this passion for love, justice, respect and truth is having a ripple effect beyond what we can see within the four walls of a religious institution? What if this movement is a choice we make everyday by how we live, how we love and who we are – especially around those we may disagree with?

Matt is a great example of this kind of movement. Matt loves to dance. You’ve probably seen the video of him dancing all over the world. He started out just doing his solo dance at random places in the world that were popular or well-known. Stride Gum heard about what he was doing and sponsored him to go all over the world and do his dance. But one day, as he tells it, he was in a village and children came out and danced with him. It changed everything. He realized that it’s not about the famous structures or places you visit and see, it’s about connecting with people – people who share this same earth, this same breath, that we do. And so he kept dancing – with people. And, as he puts it, “travel is important. It helps us learn what we’re capable of, that the path laid in front of us isn’t the only one we can choose, and that we don’t need to be so afraid of each other all the time.”

This is his latest video, made this year. He wanted to make it because he believed there was something still to say. As he says, “This video was made without a sponsor. You don’t have to buy anything. Just remember we need to take care of each other….” Notice the places he dances. Notice that he learns their dance, too. And together, the ripple effect of connection reaches out to you and me. Love, justice, truth, it’s all there. And it can’t be held within a box. It can’t be contained within four walls. In fact, when it is, it will die. The dance is happening all around us. Will you join this movement – this dance?

(To learn more about Matt’s story and see his first video, go to his website at wherethehellismatt.com)