Convergence of Thoughts

So, several things have got me started again.
First, the Leadership Team at my school read a fascinating (and easy-reading) book on business theory: The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, by Patrick Lencioni. Second, I heard one of the most genuinely heart-felt sermons from Lakesha at the end of her internship, and read a blog about the same day's events by our 'regular' pastor, Jan. Third, I attended a staff workshop today on the 'four patterns of thought.'

Jan blogged about exorcising demons. I have come to believe that our biggest demon at Fairlington Presbyterian Church is also the first dysfunction of a team: absence of trust. Specifically, trust that each others' intentions are good and that we can be honest and open in front of 'the team.' This demon is being fed by our approach to the first 'pattern of thought:' identity. Specifically, 'what is FPC and what is it not?'

We have two somewhat distinct groups within our church community, with widely diverging views on this question. Some of us (myself included) are trying to find the common ground. I see the value in the old ways, having been raised successfully in them (thanks, Mom and Dad). I also see the desperate need for change as I observe those around me who were not successfully raised in those ways. I think I am not alone in this - far from it. Many of us are starting to see and feel the convergence between old and new.
But there are entrenched groups on both sides, who do not yet see the value of other positions. Some seem to view all things old as automatically inferior to the 'new way.' Others seem to regard all things new as unnecessary encroachments on the traditions that have fed them for so long. It is difficult to determine at first glance whether either group is truly motivated by the Holy Spirit, or merely by their pre-established worldview. Thus, the absence of trust that so plainly manifested itself this summer.

For the uninitiated: at some point this summer, a sign on church property was permanently disfigured. By whom? Don't know (and don't want to). This was, as Lakesha put it, deeply disturbing. However, there is more to the story. The vandalism consisted of adding the word "Church" to a sign that had been printed, "Welcome to Fairlington Presbyterian." This was part of a larger pattern in which the word 'church' disappeared from signage, bulletins, and other places where we declare our identity. Now, the web-savvy among us are well aware that we had an extensive dialogue about the various meanings and uses of the word "church" this summer. Personally, I disagreed with removing all reference to our community, worship service, and facility as a "church." However, I was in on the dialogue so I understood that the motives behind it were far from sinister. But this points to the fatal flaw in the dialogue: it was held mostly online (see: "all things new are autmatically better"), so a significant number of people were excluded by default. In hindsight, this is equally disturbing.

Now, it would seem that a silly thing like whether we include the word "Church" on our signs and in our bulletins shouldn't provoke so much angst. Certainly, I agree with the comment made elsewhere: I don't want to worship words. I want to worship God. So why all the fuss? Because this word cuts to the core of some people's identity. There are faithful people in our midst who genuinely feel that their identity within the group was changed without their consent. They came 'to church' only to find that, suddenly, it wasn't a 'church' anymore. That last sentence may sound silly in print (it certainly feels silly typing it), but it's real. Keep in mind - the word church wasn't just removed in connection to the building. It was removed, period.

So how do we exorcise this demon? It is only through thoughtful and prayerful dialog that we will overcome our absence of trust. All need to be heard, honestly and openly, with none judged unfairly. Decisions need to be made and explained carefully to build more trust, little by little. This is how we must forge our new identity together, not through the hasty subtraction and addition of words. It will frustrate type-A's like myself but we will persevere. I think we will be surprised at how easily people can accept decisions with which they don't agree, if that decision is made in the best of the democratic tradition our denominational heritage has to offer.

Most of all, through this whole process we need to be less hasty to question others' motives. This particular demon lies within all of us. We have been watching the speck in our brothers' eye, without seeing the plank within our own.

Believe it or not, I'm still alive. I thought I was about to surface but got pulled back under.
Blogging is a worthwhile way to express yourself but a little time-consuming.

Mini-blogs:
1. It shouldn't take a pending disaster for us to let our President have his pick for health secretary.
2. Glad to see Virginia is finally going to pony up for expanded and expedited Amtrak service.
3. Dreading the megaconstruction delays in Tyson's: Toll Lanes on the beltway, and metro extension. Looking forward to the results, sometime this century.
4. Excited to meet our supply pastor for Jan's sabbatical.
5. I shouldn't be up at 11:48 on a school night.

Electrictiy

Well, I'm back. Something had to get me going again.

It WASN'T turning 35. I feel my naps coming on a little earlier now. Alas, I rarely get them.

If you haven't seen this yet, you should:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY


Most commentators have focused on the crowd's (and judges') initial low expectations: wholly unfair, and based only on appearances.

I want to focus on something else: electricity. It's nice to see a skeptical crowd so easily won over by such obvious talent. It's nice to hear that talent from the most unexpected places. It's nice to see so many people, many of younger generations, that excited about an essentially classical-sounding piece of music.

It would have been nice to feel the electricity in that room, first-hand.

So Much To Say

And so little time....

I love teaching intersession. It's great to get to teach a different subject / grade for a couple of weeks, and go more in-depth. A major flaw in American education is that our system requires us to "cover" a lot of material, and cares little for real understanding. Standardized testing has only made this worse.

But to be successful in life, our students need to understand things. So, intersession gives us a chance to build broader background knowledge and deeper comprehension.

A lot of students in this country are gradually disengaging from their own education. It's telling that several years of focus on multiple-choice testing has not increased our high school graduation rate. So it's comforting to see that students do, in fact, still love to learn - when given the chance to do it right.

We can do it right during the regular school year, of course. And we're getting better at it all the time - the delicate balancing act between what politicians demand and what professionals know.

I just love this time when the balance can tip 100% towards the children.

Sunday

8:00 AM - AM stuff.
8:40 AM - Drive to church (thankfully a short drive)
8:50 AM - Warm up and practice for morning worship
9:30 AM - Attend discussion about Holy Grounds community in the church parlor
10:30 AM - Choir warmups and prayers.
11:00 AM - Play and participate in worship
12:15 PM - Go to Rockland's with Chris and Brooke for BBQ. Frequently consult phone for SU Basketball Info. Drive home via Harris Teeter for quick grocery shop. Finish watching SU game (go 'Cuse!). Start on Sunday Post.
2:30 PM - A nice walk outside.
3:30 PM - Naptime.
4:40 PM - Household stuff: laundry (3 loads), clean kitchen and bathroom, take out recycling, etc.
6:30 PM - TV time. Simpsons, Family Guy, and some TIVO to catch up on. Also make supper (mustard dill salmon, garlic mashed potatoes, peas, salad, girl scout cookies). Make lunch and get clothes ironed for tomorrow. Replace missing buttons on 2 shirts and 1 pair of pants.
10:00 PM - Early bedtime today.

Saturday

6:30 AM - still asleep.
7:30 AM - see above.
8:30 AM, 9:30 AM, 10:30 AM - see above.
11:30 AM - finally getting up. Breakfast etc. Read the Post and skim the ones I didn't get to spend much time with this week.
1:00 PM - walk outside for a while, gym for half an hour.
2:30 PM - clean out inbox (snail mail and email) and deal with things that need dealing with.
3:15 PM - house cleaning for a little while.
4:00 PM - a little nap.
4:30 PM - get ready to go out. Metro to Kennedy Center.
5:30 PM - walk around Kennedy Center and enjoy the atmosphere.
6:00 PM - Eastman Trombone Choir concert on the Millenium Stage.
7:00 PM - meet up with an old acquaintance from the concert. Agree to meet at Elephant and Castle for dinner at 8:00.
7:45 PM - after metro and walk, decide to use GPS feature on new phone to locate Elephant and Castle. (I've been before but not from that direction.) LOVE having this feature on phone!
10:00 - Metro home well satisfied with food (and drink) from pub.
10:30 - Watch old British sitcoms on PBS for a while.
12:00 - Bed.

Friday

6:30 - Start again.
7:00 - Drive time.
7:30 - Staff Breakfast (a regular monthly one, no special occasion this time.)
7:45 - Kiss and Ride. (Last day! Won't have this again until May. :) )
8:15 - Morning Meeting, 6th grade.
8:45 - Teach 4 hours of music classes. Eat with a second grade class in need of support, and some of their 6th grade 'big buddies.' Find a crew to put instruments away for intersession. Do same for colleague. Get 25+ sixth graders who signed up for chorus (or might want to) into a meeting with the middle school director. Help try to figure out why most of the people who already signed up, aren't even on her list. Go to 6th grade presentation of Restaurant Concepts (an exercise in creative use of language for advertising).
2:55 - Dismissal.
3:15 - Go home. Stop at Macy's Ballston on the way for new shoes. Come out with shirt, cufflinks, socks, and tie as well. Thank self for single-handedly rescuing the local retail trade. Light snack. Gym for an hour. Charge and activate new phone (yay). Phone calls re: weekend plans. Get ready for weekend plans, wearing new shoes +etc.
9:00 - Nowruz / Uncle Bashir's Birthday party at "Aghan Restaurant" in Alexandria.
12:30 - Home and to bed.

Thursday

Well, not normal. But a little relief.

6:30 - Up and get ready. No need for breakfast.
7:00 - Drive time.
7:30 - Staff breakfast in the Library. Superintendent comes. Good news about AYP from last year. It's a long story for another post.
8:15 - Morning Meeting in a 3rd grade.
8:45 - Regular day begins. 1st hour class is out testing. 2nd class is late due to testing and needs a little extra recess. Only end up teaching 1 and 1/2 hours of actual music. Also, an hour with fifth grade science. Use extra time to: clean a couple of shelves in my storage room, meet with strings teacher about the instrument grant, answer more emails, file forms. Use lunch to: shop for a phone (finally something good from Sprint: a $200 voucher for an upgrade!) Also, make final arrangements for middle school chorus teacher to come meet 6th grade students who want to register for middle school in 7th grade. Proofread bulletin. Find midi file so I can listen to new hymn.
3:15 - Leave at the bell for a change. Get cash and gas. Drive to Alexandria (blissfully, only 35 minutes today. Almost a record for a weekday afternoon!)
4:00 - Eat at Atlantis. Read the post, almost all of it.
5:00 - Practice at church for 2 hours. Walk to Starbucks for madeleines and a latte.
7:30 - Choir practice for hour and a half.
9:15 - I'm home. Watch Hell's Kitchen. Make 3 new rehearsal CD's for All-County kids who lost/broke theirs. 12-year-olds: gotta love 'em!
10:30 - Ready for bed.

Wednesday

Ah, normalcy. Sort of.
6:30 - You know the drill. Also get on Facebook and wish my sister a happy birthday. Hope to dickens it goes through - new Facebook slightly confusing. I JUST got used to the old one and they changed it again. AAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH.
7:45 - Kiss and Ride.
8:15 - Morning Meeting with a 6th grade class.
8:45 - Teach a total of 5 hours of music classes. 3 days to go until a 'break' and it shows. We manage to keep it together. Eat alone for a change. Help out colleague who's taking her son to check on his broken collarbone by supervising cleanup and dismissal.
3:15 - Set up room for grad class tonight. Go over agenda. Etc. Decompress.
4:30 - Class.
7:30 - Clean up. Go home. Gym. Supper. Urgent email from boss - we're all meeting the Superintendent tomorrow. I think it's a good thing.
9:45 - Post this blog entry. Will do dishes and go to bed.

Tuesday

Ok, Mark, sorry about the dig on Whitman. But I think you understood my general point. :)

Tuesday:

6:30 - Morning stuff, same as Monday but different breakfast.
7:15 - Drive time.
7:45 - Kiss and Ride.
8:15 - Check in with my sub. She's all set.
8:20 - Start marathon meeting and planning day to: 1. Work on grant application for musical instruments. 2. Get roster for my 2-week intersession class, starting next Monday. (28 5th and 6th grade GT/Young Scholars students will be exploring careers of interest and learning/practicing basic communication, teamwork, and time management. I have 14 kids AM, and 14 PM.) Interview all 28 children about their interests. Look for online resources (God Bless 4H). Consult with counselors and GT teacher. Email several outside people. Check out 83 library books on 14 possible careers. Re-attempt to hex the same three printers that didn't work on Monday. Prepare reminder packet for All-County Chorus students that has to go home pronto. Try to figure out why 2 kids I was expecting aren't enrolled in my class. Try to figure out why several kids who signed up for middle school chorus for next year aren't in it now.
2:50 - Recheck with sub. All is well. Help with dismissal. Set up room for dance team.
3:15 - Dance team. 18 sweaty children and 2 tired choreographers.
4:30 - Clean room and set up for Wednesday. Double check grades for a few kids before report cards get printed. Read homework for grad class I'm co-teaching on Wednesdays.
6:00 - Meet Fasih of soccer fame after his practice to make sure he knows how to fill out financial aid forms (Mom speaks little English and has no college experience in the US).
6:30 - Drive time.
7:15 - Gym, supper, read. Put away Sunday's laundry while watching Last Restaurant Standing.
10:30 - Bed.

Monday

This week I am taking my cue from Pastor Jan, who shared informally last Sunday about her week. This is hardly a typical week for me (it's the last week before a 3-week intersession/break). But anyway.

Mine will go day-by-day. Here's Monday:

6:30 - shower, dress, breakfast (bacon and eggs, toast, yogurt w/fresh strawberries).
7:15 - drive 30 minutes and 18.7 miles to work.
7:45 - Kiss and Ride duty. Open doors and make sure children get inside safely.
8:15 - Set up chorus chairs and music. Help colleague carry juice and donuts. Copy CD of accompaniments.
8:45 - 2 chorus rehearsals, 45 minutes each. This week, boys' sectionals - 1 for 6th grade, 1 for 5th. In between, talk to admin. about a behavior situation (wouldn't sit where the chorus needed him to.)
10:45 - meet with L., my co-director,re: how sectionals went. Answer emails re: church organ, SOL testing schedule, FGMEA constitutional amendment. Start writing sub plans for Tuesday.
11:30 - lunch with 15 6th graders.
12:00 - Make sure everyone has rides for All-County Chorus practice this afternoon. Double-check building use form for spring concert. Take another stab at sub plans. Interrupted by:
12:30 - Dismissal. Make sure nobody gets plowed over.
12:45 - Team Leaders meeting. Discuss how we can help our teams plan and collaborate more effectively.
2:15 - Staff meeting on budget update.
2:30 - Leave early to go to All-County rehearsal at a nearby school.
4:30 - Come back to Dogwood to finally finish my sub plans. Attempt to hex at least 3 printers for technical failures. Answer emails re: AGO, Church finance, piano tuning.
6:00 - Go to South Lakes High School to: walk the Lake Thoreau trail (a beautiful 2 miles and my only hope of excersize today). Stop at CVS, Starbucks, and SunTrust along the walk. Then,
Varsity Boys Soccer vs. TC Williams. Had about 10 former students on the field, and 4 from the travel team I currently work with. SOUTH LAKES WINS! (For the NY people reading this, this is the equivalent of Whitman beating Fairport in, well, anything). I love SLHS but Williams is at least twice the size and this usually isn't a fair match.
9:15 - Meet Fasih after game, give needed college aid forms.
9:45 - Home. Email. Read. Bed by 10:15.

Tuesday will be a very different day.

Making Disciples

"The Great Commission:"

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.

We seem to be doing at least OK (not super, but OK) with the 'going out' part. We deliver furniture, serve meals, offer classes, and fund clinics. But I think we're doing it only in light of the commandment:

Love your neighbor as yourself.

We have neglected the full meaning of the commission, because we are weak on the "making disciples" part. We do our good works, but are embarassed to mention Jesus in the process. Understandably so - some elements in the Evangelical movement gave Christianity in general a bad name, by using the Gospel as a weapon rather than as a tool. The minute many people hear "Jesus" or "Church," they think of judgmentalism, fear, and divisiveness. Or they think of the message, "Repent and come to church right now or you're going to hell forever." This was not a productive way to make disciples.

But neither is never bringing it up. When we are allergic to talking about Jesus, we can't claim to be doing good works in the name of the Lord. We might as well be good Buddhists, good atheists with a dose of liberal guilt, maybe even morally defunct souls who have been ordered into community service by a court. When our good works are repeated, over and over again, without ever a mention of WHY we do them, we are equally ineffective at making disciples.

The song says, "They'll know we are Christians by our Love." That love certainly includes caring about people's bodies enough to feed, clothe, treat, care for them. It includes caring about their minds enough to train them.

It also includes caring enough about their souls to tell them about the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Not as a weapon - "I'm doing this as a way to conquer my enemies." Not as a bribe - "Join my church or I'll stop helping you." Not as an instrument of shame - "I'm trying to embarass you into joining a church." Not as threat - 'Join me or you'll go to Hell.'

As an instrument of Love - "Jesus calls us to make earth more like the Kingdom of Heaven." When we are serving people, ostensibly in the name of the Lord, we ought to be able at least to say that much.

An extended comment

This started as a comment to another's blog but I felt I would rather give it its own place here:


The concept in question is that 'the glory days of the institutional church are over.'
In general, agreed, if by "glory days" we mean "lots of people show up, but a lot of them attend only because they're expected to, not because they really mean it or because they're trying to live as Christians in the day-to-day." Personally, I'd rather have 100 sincere Christians than 1000 just trying to be seen. But...

I'm not sure it's entirely fair to call them "THE" glory days of "THE" institutional church.

The church as an institution has been through many life cycles and always reinvented itself. The circuit-riders of the early-19th century Methodists were an institution. So were the camp meetings of the great revivals. The monasteries of 8th century Ireland. The town churches of reformation-era Holland. The missions of 17th century New Spain. The underground house churches of the 1st century AD. Etc. Etc. Etc. All of these had their glory days, and then evolved - or faded.

It may be more accurate to speak of "SOME" glory days of "OUR" institutional church. It doesn't ring as well in the ears, but it may be more accurate.

As Jan said in church on Sunday, "Jesus will always have a church."

The true glory days of the institutional church are still in the future: the church will become one with the Kingdom of Heaven. No other institution will be necessary.

Where I Did My Best

Monday, I posted about a few of the challenges of my work. (See "Never Dull," Feb. 23).

I see progress on all fronts but one. And I am happy to report some big successes:

1. Still pouting, but for shorter times, and less overt crying.
2. Child number 2 has successfully had THREE half-hour lessons with me without a single snide remark.
5. Found new mentor for one, reading buddy for another, special job as setup assistant for yet another. Baby steps, but adolescence is superhard when it's fresh. And the toughest case - managed to catch him smiling and working at the same time. He had remembered how to find the least common multiple of 2 numbers, without any prompting or reminders, and he was SO proud.

Unfortunately, no. 6 remains a heartbreaker. But I did my best with this colleague today.

"Did I Do My Best Today?"

Just got back from the annual Blue and Gold Banquet. For those unfamiliar with the term, this is the awards ceremony for Cub Scouts.

Frequent readers will (hopefully) remember that I talked about how diverse my school's neighborhood is, both economically and ethnically. Scouting, on the other hand, is often seen as a bastion of the white middle class. Indeed, our local pack was started a few years ago by a group of professional families of Caucasian descent. In many areas it has remained so.

But in this instance, Cub Scouts is a VERY good thing.

Tonight I witnessed 5 second-year Webelos scouts (fifth graders) receive their Arrow of Light award and graduate to Boy Scouts. This group included: 1 African-American, 2 Hispanics, 1 White American, and 1 German/Middle Easterner. There were 2 Catholics, an Evangelical, a Baptist, and a Muslim. They speak 2 languages and came from 4 different countries. They include 2 ESOL students and 3 with IEPs.

This group of 5 (and the roughly 35 younger boys behind them) came together for two reasons. First, the founders of the pack did not keep it as their own bastion of privilege - they openly sought out their childrens' classmates (not just their friends) and consciously invited the whole school community to participate. Second, the invitees, mostly immigrants and often seen as outsiders by society at large, accepted the invitation. It's almost like human alchemy: from several distinct elements, a new thing of great value is being born.

These five young men (they were called that officially tonight, probably for the first time) have taken what should prove to be a significant step: they have united as a community, set goals for themselves and their group, and accomplished those goals. They have learned from the example of last year's crop, and set a continuing example for the group to follow.

During the ceremony, we were all reminded of a motto of scouting. "When you go to bed each night, ask yourself: Did I do my best today? How can I do better tomorrow?" I can safely say, they have all learned to ask and answer these questions. I can remember a time when they didn't - I've known 4 of the 5 since kindergarten. I am astounded at what this new community has done to improve their lives.

Memo to the GOP

THE MARKET IS NOT GOD.

Enough theo-capitalism already.

There are situations in which the market is a perfectly acceptable way of solving things. I do not want to see it abolished from our lives.

But it's time to acknowledge the market's chief limit: it is motivated solely by profit. The market is not motivated by morals or ethics. Certainly there are individual capitalists with a greater cause. But the market itself is driven by the love of money.

So there are some things the market just can't solve. Like health care: As we were reminded tonight, Teddy Roosevelt called for reform nearly a hundred years ago. We have spent the greater part of a century waiting for the invisible hand of the market to produce morally acceptable results. But that is not the purpose of markets! The market did exactly what it is meant to do: it maximized money. It cannot be trusted to do anything else. Our century of reliance on free-market principles has produced double-digit profit margins, multiple layers of corporate overhead and bureaucracy, and a system where every decision is made based on the ability of someone to profit from different courses of action. Given the purpose of markets, we should not be surprised.

But we should be outraged. This is NOT how we are called to care for the sick. History has proven that the market can't, and private philanthropy won't, do what is necessary to solve the moral and ethical issues is this area.

But rather than address the problem, the GOP blindly insists on worshiping the free market. They still think that if we "give the problem to the market," it will get solved. We're supposed to be giving our problems to God.

How God calls us to solve this problem together is a subject for another post. But it's clear to me that simply trusting the market - giving in to our love of money - is definitely NOT the answer.

Never Dull

So, I'm a music teacher, right?
Yes, but I'm also a consulting teacher on classroom management / social skills / community building. Confidentiality and professionalism prevent me from divulging many details, but here are some things I've been chewing on over the past week:

1. The second-grader who cries/pouts when he can't sit with the teacher.
2. The second-grader who just can't seem to let one go without comment.
3. Do we call CPS on _____? (A tougher call than you might think.)
4. The fifth-grade girl making a "bad people" book and writing in it things that aren't necessarily the whole truth.
5. The sixth-grade boy embarrassed at his deficits and struggling to see his strengths. (Actually, several of these.)
6. The colleague struggling to see good in a child I personally adore.
7. Boy-girl issues with 12-year-olds (I always seem to be the default relationship counselor.)
a. Should I ask __ out? (answer always: what do your parents think?)
b. I'm going out with __. What should I get her? (answer always: a teddy bear)
c. Should I maybe get her earrings instead? (answer: NNNNNNNOOOOOOOO)
d. I like ____ but she's going out with ___. (answer always: It's not your time. Let it go.)
8. A colleague who asks for suggestions, but I experience tells me they won't be tried.
9. Better ways to acknowledge students' social success without feeling like we're buying them off. Right now, we don't buy children off - with candy, Mt. Dew, etc. - and that's a good thing. But our recognitions seem a little lacking somehow.
10. What to do with boogers (always a kindergarten issue this time of year).
11. A class that is ostracizing a newcomer who seems perfectly happy being ostracized, and overtly plans how to keep it that way. Deep down she wants to belong (we all do,) but she has a veneer of alabaster.

February is a long, long month. But I know that discussing these issues now will help us have a bountiful spring.

A Question for Roland

I don't write as often as I'd like because it's hard to form coherent thoughts sometimes. But this one was too easy.

Roland Burriss,
My question for you is NOT "how dumb do you think we are?" You said today that you don't want us to rush to judgment. You want us to wait and get the facts.

You have now had five (count'em, five!) opportunities to tell the truth. Three of these came under oath. You have given five different responses on these five occasions.

So, my question for you is, "How dumb do you want all of us to think you are?" Stop digging yourself deeper. Stop talking. I don't see how anyone can actually believe any of your answers at this point, knowing that tomorrow we'll just get a different one.

Great weekend with Mom and Dad. Day off Monday. Really REALLY plan to write on something...

Wow! It's been longer than I thought.
We DID get a snow day that Wednesday (see below) but no luck with the blogging.

Things like a Tuesday (yes, Tuesday) wedding - held on the date for zodiacal reasons - and the minutiae of life keep interfering.

But I've come to recognize the spiritual discipline of blogging, if only because it gives me something to focus on when I'm talking to myself.

I hereby resolve: at least twice a week.

So, eventually, I'll get around to blogging about this event. You've probably seen the pics on facebook anyway...

I have a slip of about 40 possible blog topics on my desk. Maybe we'll get a snow day Wednesday and I can tackle some. :)

A Poem

Believing
Aspiring
Reaching
Ascending
Calling
Knocking

(Hears Us, Sees Synergy, Even In Need)

Opening
Brightening
Achieving
Making
Alive

It Was So Worth It!

Preparing

Wow, it's been a while.

Preparing for the inauguration tomorrow. Many, many friends have told me I'm crazy for trying to go downtown. But I can't help myself.

I could sit at home and watch on TV, and see and hear every word. It is quite possible that, by going, I won't be able to see or hear anything. But I can't help myself.

I've always voted but never gotten involved beyond that point. But it's time to stop spectating. I can't help myself.

I have 4 possible travel plans, a great travel buddy, and an itching desire to be a part of something this powerful, not by sitting in comfort on the couch, but by getting up and doing something - anything - to be involved.

The best argument I've heard not to go, is that the work presidency should be more important than a single celebration. In other words, we didn't vote for Obama so we could throw a party - we voted for Obama so we could get to work. He used the analogy of matrimony - the wedding is nice, but it's the marriage that really counts.

On those terms, I'm looking forward to a great presidency. But I'm also going to the party. Yes, I want to have my cake and eat it, too. I can't help myself.

Who's on the Outside?

Yet another thing there's been a lot of talk about lately:
Reaching those "on the outside." According to the Great Commission, this is one of the core functions of the church. But it requires us to identify who's out there.

A group we've focused on a lot lately is young, digitally connected millenials. This group is, indeed, on the outside as far as Christianity is concerned. Over half of them have never set foot in a church. But as far as society and culture are concerned, they're very "in."

But my life so far has been focused on a very different group: recent immigrants, the underemployed, families in poverty. This group is also often on the "outs" as far as Christianity is concerned. (Many of them claim religion, of either Roman Catholic or Evangelical background. But they don't identify with the parishes in the area because those denominations aren't meeting their current needs.) But they're also "out" in terms of society and culture. They live 2 families to 1 townhouse, work 3 jobs to feed their kids, drive a 1994 Corolla, and don't have regular internet access. Or dental care. Or, sometimes, jeans that fit. Their kids know how to use technology, but lack the financial resources to take advantage.

But it seems like all our creative and financial energy is going towards tech-ing up the church. (I speak not of my own congregation specifically, but of church leadership and membership in general). Are we deliberately excluding this second group?

This is my main objection to the debate about things like setting up online groups, killer websites, twitter networks, and using Facebook to conduct church business. These tools will help us reach one underserved segment of society, but by their nature come at the exclusion of another.

Of course, one congregation can't be all things to all people. But it seems that a whole lot of congregations have decided to go one way here, and there is a dearth of groups effectively reaching out in other directions. I'm not even sure we've all genuinely considered them -

Back to the Grind

I haven't written much lately. On purpose.
Tomorrow, vacation ends and back to the grind.
I'll probably feel compelled to write in this space again as well.