It's all about me!

I am an outstanding driver. At least, I'm better than all the other idiots on the road. No, I don't mean you of course, just everybody else.

 

My wife often wonders why I get so frustrated with other drivers and it's usually because they are so inconsiderate. They can't merge properly, or do the speed limt, or act like they own the road, can't indicate, are in the wrong lane for their turn, are in the right lane for their turn too soon....and I could go on. But it doesn't stop there, I've noticed that a general discourtesy and ignorance towards everyone else is spreading.

 

I was at a department store on Sunday with one of my sons and I mentioned to him how the two people in front of us were able to walk - slowly - in such a way as to completely block the aisle. It happens in the supermarkets as well with trolleys, or people whose kids are running wild! Our kids never did that!! It just offends me that people are so selfish as to ignore the feelings and comfort of others.

 

And then I realized, the reason these people were all upsetting me so much wasn't because they were ignorant towards other people (although I'm convinced some are) but was because I was making it all about me. They were infringing on my road and my space and my time. Where I was judging (yes, the 'J' word) the people around I was actually guilty of selfish, egocentric behavior and thinking myself.

 

I was making it all about me.

 

That isn't a pleasant or encouraging revelation. I like to think of myself as courteous and polite and concerned for the well-being of other people. I try take seriously the words of Paul, "In humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others." (Phil. 2:3-4) no one is great at this, but I try, and in my own mind I do pretty well.....but obviously not.

 

At our church a few weeks ago I was speaking and alluded to this by confessing that I was actually quite a judgmental person. I've done the Myers-Briggs analysis and I come out as 'perceiving' not 'judging', so this was a bit of a shock to me. Now I realize just how ingrained it is. Despite my best efforts I treat everyone and react to people as though the whole world revolved around me.

 

And you probably do the same.

 

We can't help it. I think it's hard wired into us as a survival instinct left over from the days when if I didn't get the mammoth before the other blokes did my family would starve - and heaven help the slow, inconsiderate cave person who got in my way! Times have changed, but we haven't. To behave in the manner that Paul indicates is contrary to both my natural inclination and the culture in which I live. Paul goes on link this mindset with that of Christ, a different way of thinking, acting and being human. This is what we were meant to be, this is what God is leading us towards, this is what the future holds.

 

I wonder what our communities would look like if we made life less about us. I wonder what justice and poverty and economic equality would be like if we were more concerned with others. I wonder what our churches and worship services would be like if we looked for a church where we could contribute rather than one that fed our consumerist wants. Even more, what if our churches were less concerned with what Sundays looked like and more interested in what we could do every other day of the week? In other words, I wonder what this world would look like if we took Paul's words seriously.

 

There are a lot of things in my life that need work. Despite my sometimes over-inflated opinion of myself, I have a very long way to go. Like you, I live in a world where the average person is more concerned with themselves than other people, a world that each of us feels revolves around us. But what if it didn't have to be that way, what if it could be different?

 

Jesus opens that possibility up for us. He shows us and leads us in the way that makes us truly human, true imagers of the God who created us to be his presence in the world and for the world. I wish it were easy, I wish I could say I follow him well, but it's tough, a narrow road that is difficult to walk.

 

Yet every journey, Confucius tells us, begins with a single step. The first step to this better world, this world where other people really matter, is to recognize that it isn't all about me.

 

And for that matter, it isn't all about you either - just in case you thought it was....

 

Love is Complicated

I use the word love for a lot of things: I love my wife, I love football, I love pizza, I love my kids. Now we all understand that the way in which I use the word doesn't mean I experience similar intensity of 'love' for all those things. I love and am in love with my wife, but I'm not 'in love' with pizza (truly, I'm not!), and obviously the meaning of the word is different in these two instances, but as I've been thinking about love this week I've been considering how absolutely complicated the emotion is.

 

The way we use the word for so many things is only the tip of the iceberg. Across our world people fall in and out of love. Relationships that may have lasted for decades can be over because love had died, been killed, or just trickled away. We are told that love is a choice as well as a feeling, and there is deep truth in this, but it is more than a choice, it is more than just an act of the will. Ultimately love is complicated.

 

I don't pretend to understand love. I feel it, I express it, I think I know what it is, and I also know that to define it is beyond me. To me, the definition of love isn't found in words but in an image. The strange and compelling image of a man hanging, dying, on a cross. This sounds religious, and it is, but the concept of a creator who could love his creation so much that he became one of them and suffered death for them is breathtaking in its possibility and mind-shatteringly astounding in its reality.

 

Jesus doesn't help in simplifying love, however. He tells me to, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your mind and with all your should and with all your strength." How on earth can I do that? He doesn't even give me the option of using one of my varied meanings of the word 'love.' He teaches that I am to 'agape' God, to love him selflessly and unconditionally, not based on what he can do for me but for who he is. It is a love that is founded in his love for his creation and for me. It is a love that finds its reality in me reflecting back to God the pure love he has for me. As John puts it in his first letter, "We love because he first loved us." (1 John 4:19)

 

But then Jesus adds, "And love your neighbor as yourself." Again he uses that word, 'agape.' We are commanded by Christ to love others with the same selfless, unconditional love that we have for God. This complicates matters. I don't want to love people like that, or at least not all people. We try to get out of it by saying that we love them, we just don't like them. And again, there is some validity to this, but really what we are admitting is that we neither love or like them and would be happy to not associate with them at all - thank you very much!

 

The whole 'loving my neighbor' thing is doable, to a degree, as long as my neighbor is just that, my neighbor. One of the mass of humanity that I can care for and love by donating to Compassion or Oxfam, by bringing in their wheely bin or letting them in front of me on traffic, or by simply expressing my love for humanity. Jesus gets mean, however, and makes this ridiculous statement, "Everyone will know that you are my disciples by the love - agape - you have for each other." Are you kidding me Jesus? Have you met Christians? Some of them are pretty hard to stomach, let alone love. Can't I just tolerate them? Or graciously ignore them? That would work.

 

And then, get this, then he utters the words that really kick us in the....guts, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven." So Jesus, with all due respect, are you out of your mind? I am supposed to 'agape' people who hate me? Who want to kill me ? Love was complicated enough before you started teaching.

 

Here's the thing, followers of Jesus should be known by their unexpected and incomprehensible love. I know this needs unpacking in space I don't have here, but let's face it, we're not. Christians may be misunderstood and misrepresented, at times with malicious intent, but really, followers of the one whose love was evidenced on a cross aren't known for the kind of 'agape' love commanded by their Lord. A lifestyle of this kind of love, this selfless and unconditional concern for others is not only what would mark Christians as followers of the crucified king, but truly be the light on the hill and salt of the earth that is our calling.

 

I can't do it. Love is complicated enough without Jesus adding this extra stuff, and my heart is too corrupt, selfish and greedy to love like that. Until I am reminded of two more truths. This love doesn't originate in me, it it a reflection of the love my Father has for me and all his creation. And this love is enabled by a work of his Spirit within me, a fruit Paul calls it, that grows in me as the Spirit does his work.

 

Love is complicated. It is all tied up with emotions and relationships and values and wants and desires and pleasures and choices. Love, however, is a reminder that God is present in his creation. And the selfless unconditional love he calls his followers to exhibit may not simplify things, but does serve to declare to all the world that the king is present, the kingdom of love is here, and there is a new way of being human.

 

Do you find it easy to love? Are Jesus' expectations unreasonable? Does it help to see discipleship as a journey and not a destination? What would help followers of Jesus be known for their love? What would that look like in your life?

 

Is less more?

My wife likes the concept of minimalism. In the course of researching an assignment she was writing on the subject we had many discussions on what that looks like and how it might work in the real world. Minimalism is defined by one author as, "pursuing your greatest passions by owning fewer things," it is living a more simple, uncluttered life. To be honest, I get the attraction, but I am also engaged in a seemingly more irreducibly complex contemporary life. So although there really is a part of me that would like to simplify and declutter, the culture in which I live and the world it informs tells it just isn't possible.

 

Enter the minimalist text editor!

 

Thanks to the advent of the new iPad the second generation came down in price to the degree that I fulfilled the desires of my heart and bought one. And I love it as much as I always thought I would! In researching how people handled their workflow on the iPad I discovered that many writers used simple text editors for the production of blogs, articles and even longer works. Typically, I thought I'd give it a go. So I acquired one for the princely sum of $0.99 from the app store and set to work. Magic!! The focus on the written word was gratifying and mesmerizing, without distraction the page drew me in, and coupled with the intimacy of typing on the iPad saw me hammer out over four thousand words of a writing project in one day - and thoroughly enjoy the experience.

 

If minimalism can work to make me - yes, even me! - more productive in writing, what might that mean in other areas of my life? Don't worry, I haven't jumped on the band-wagon and embraced a minimalist lifestyle, but I have been thinking about what that could mean in my ministry and my faith.

 

Jesus was a minimalist. He took the six hundred odd laws of first century Jusaism, and the hundreds of interpretations of those laws, and reduced them to two, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your mind and with all your soul and with all your strength; and love your neighbor as yourself." That's pretty minimal! He lived a simple life, taught a simple message, and inaugurated a kingdom movement that has transformed the world.

 

Paul wrote, "Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." (1 Tim. 6:6-8) In Micah we read, "He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." All pretty simple stuff. (In the direction, if not the implementation....)

 

With these thoughts in my mind I asked myself: How can such minimalism assist in our lives? Will it allow us to focus on the important? In what way can we use such a focus and simplicity in our lives of faith and our spiritual formation? What could this mean? What 'productivity' or benefits could be released in our lives?

 

I read this on Neil Cole's blog, "There is something very powerful about the editing process that creates a simple and yet potent thing. It is not just about what is excluded, but about what you deem so significant that it is included, that makes an idea potently simple." That is an incredible thought, that the power isn't in the exclusion, but what is deemed so significant that it is included! In this terribly complex life, what things do I consider so significant, so important that I cannot do without them?

 

It seems to me that we have lost the art of contentment. I don't mean to just settle for your lot in life, but it seems that enough is never really enough in the consumerist world in which we live. There is more to life than just food and shelter, that isn't the issue, the question is how much more? What things, what desires, what goals, what activities are actually choking the significant things in life? In a world where arrogant celebrities are idolized, where is the space to humbly walk before God? Might simplicity, minimalism, decluttering actually leave more room for true spiritual formation, personal growth and meaningful relationships?

 

We live at a time when busy-ness is worn as a badge of honor and our personal worth and significance is attached to what and how much we do. But is that right? Is humanity becoming more fulfilled and finding satisfaction, or more stressed and malcontent with our frantic yearning for more? Is being busier improving our lives, or are the activities in which we engage just eating up the few years we have on this planet?

 

I'm not a minimalist. I sit typing on my iPad in my house surrounded by my possessions. And yet there is, in the simplicity of the concept, an alluring attraction to be more by having and doing less. Perhaps that's why, as a start, I'm using this basic text editor.....

 

"Give me your tired, your poor....

.....your huddled masses yearning to breathe free." These were the words that are on the Statue of Liberty to welcome the millions of immigrants that entered the United States through Ellis Island, NY. Yet these words are also appropriate over the gates of the kingdom of God, for the God's kingdom is made up of broken people.

I've been at an intensive for my Masters degree this week which is centered on the emotional, psychological and spiritual health of those engaged in Christian ministry. It came as no surprise to those of us who have been in ministry for any length of time that Christian ministry is full of broken people who have been damaged by the vagaries of the journey of life. Statistics and anecdotal evidence all support the almost unthinkable truth that pastors are normal people, susceptible to the pains, struggles, weaknesses and stresses that afflict the rest of humanity.

This is a good thing. In fact, it's such a good thing that it prompted the Apostle Paul to write, "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in hardships, in insults, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Cor. 12:9b-10) Jesus is seen most clearly in the lives of broken people who, by the power and presence of his Spirit within, faithfully walk this road of discipleship irrespective of the challenges of life. These disciples enjoy success and endure failure, they experience victories and defeats, they weep, they laugh, they mourn and they cheer, and in every season they remain resolute in their faith and love for Christ. And in those other days, those dark and troubling days when God seems far away and their faith and love falter, God graciously is faithful in his love and strengthening of his children.

The Christian church is made up of broken people. We may very in the extent of our brokenness, in the amount of healing that God has brought to our lives, but we are all, to a greater or lesser extent, broken. God loves us in our brokenness, but loves us too much to leave us that way.(That's not an original quote, but it is a good one.) My point is that we are all on a journey from brokenness to wholeness. That is both encouraging and liberating. It is encouraging in the realization that we all encourage, support and contribute to each other's healing; and liberating in the realization that we are all free to be ourselves and experience the transformational healing power of the Spirit in our own time and at our own pace.

In the church, no one is whole, no one is perfect, no one is without damage. The glorious wonder is that in Jesus Christ we broken, flawed humans find acceptance and healing love by his Spirit and in his called out community of Christ followers. The focus isn't on the brokenness, nor does ignore our brokenness, but the focus is on the person of Jesus the Messiah and his command to love, exhibit grace and forgiveness, and embrace justice and compassion. In him, Paul tells us, the very things that bring brokenness to our lives are avenues by which Jesus exhibits strength.

So, we welcome the hurting, the poor, the huddled masses who yearn to breathe the freedom that is offered in following the king, the Lord of this world, Jesus. We welcome them because they are us.

A Short Note on a Big Subject

Why are we here? That's a huge, open-ended question that might prompt all sorts of philosophical responses, but basically I just want to scratch the surface of the place of Christians and the church within our society because when I consider some of the things I read and see I think we may have confused our role.


There was a time when the church had a dominant role in society, this resulted in what we term 'Christendom', a culture and society predominantly influenced by the church and Christian values. However, Western nations in Europe, the US, Canada, Australia etc. that were a part of Christendom are now mostly secular societies, post-modern, post-Christian, holding and exploring values and lifestyles that are not generally seen as part of historic Christian orthodoxy. I am completely aware that the Christian faith is both historic and constantly reforming, and consider myself less conservative (certainly not fundamentalist) and more what Roger Olsen terms 'post-conservative' in my theology and practice of my faith. It is beyond question that the way our culture is evolving is certainly away from the type of society that was evident under Christendom.


Given that reality I think that much of the 'noise' coming from churches, pastors and the Christian Right has to do with the loss of influence and power that they are experiencing. Statistics and observation show that in the last thirty years the church has lost the voice we once had, and to many - most? - we are now seen to be irrelevant, anachronistic and intolerant. I don't think that ultimately we can reduce 'relevancy' to being 'cool,' and having the latest technology, hippest music, brightest lights or most success oriented message. Such trappings aren't bad, but they are the mist that daylight burns away. To be relevant, to have a voice in our post-modern secular world means to present a different way of living, a different set of values and different way of being human. And to do so with love, grace, mercy and justice. Kind of like Jesus did....


Whether you are English, Australian, American, Canadian, Iranian, French, South African or whatever, I'm sorry (not really) to inform you that God doesn't have a favoured-nation clause in his dealings with the world. Jesus came to expand the people of God from one nation and ethnicity to all nations and ethnicities. Whatever the laws, values or practices of our various governments, they don't change the way in which Jesus responds to his church. When we misquote, or rather misapply, Prov. 14:34, 'Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people,' we miss the point that in this case 'righteousness' isn't a return to pre-1950s values but is better understood in terms of justice. God is reminding his people Israel to act justly and exhibit care and concern towards the marginalised and needy. God isn't interested in making Australia great if it listens to the church more, he is interested in his people shining brightly in a sin ravaged world to witness to the fact that through Jesus it's possible to be different, live different, and experience in part now what will one day be fully known when Christ returns.


For example, I am stunned when pastors, theologians, bible scholars and Christian commentators weigh in on the subject of global warming. I read and hear how this is a lie and Christians shouldn't believe it. Is it? I don't know, I'm not a scientist. I guess it depends on which scientists you listen to, but ultimately it isn't something that scientific illiterates like me should pretend to understand or expound on. There is no doubt that our world is a mess and that as followers of the one who created it all we should be seeking to work for the care of our planet and the people who inhabit it. No wonder Paul reminds us in Romans 8 that the world is groaning! If, as believers in Jesus, we subscribe to an escapist theology where God will rescue his people from this horrible world and then blow it up and start over, then the final chapters of Revelation make no sense, and in losing the devil wins and in winning God actually loses. (For more I'd encourage anyone to read Surprised by Hope by N T Wright for a thoughtful, scholarly and balanced examination of these topics) Rather our theology and praxis should care for a world that God loved enough to send his Son to redeem, a world he will renew and refresh, full of people he seeks to redeem and liberate.


This isn't to subscribe to a triumphalist theology that expects the world to be Christianised in readiness for the Second Coming (latter day post-millennialism). Such a theology doesn't seem to adequately represent the ongoing struggle of the kingdom of God against that of the violence, injustice and greed that characterises our world and requires a drastic re-defining of how Jesus depicts the church and the message of the book of Revelation.


In all of the complexities we face in the 21st century the church is to be seen as representing a different way. The first century was full of people who worshiped various idols; practiced slavery; child abuse in all forms; alternative sexual lifestyles of all varieties; injustice; economic, gender, ethnic and class bias and discrimination; was ravaged by war and hate and violence and crime; in fact, much of what is represented on our televisions, newspapers and magazines - not to mention music videos!! Yet Jesus and Paul and the other authors of the New Testament didn't seek to reform their culture, they formed the church, the ekklesia, the called out ones to image this new kingdom the Messiah had inaugurated and to loving and graciously be the presence of God to their world. A kingdom marked by love, justice, mercy, generosity, equality and welcome.


In 1 Corinthians 5 Paul reminds that seriously messed up church that he hasn't been called to judge those who are outside of the church, he is encouraging the Corinthian believers to image a different way, the way of Jesus. Perhaps if the church spent less time telling other people to live in a way that is consistent with Biblical values, and did so faithfully ourselves, being known by the way we love and care more than the way we hate and judge, then maybe we would be more relevant, have more of a voice, and subversively turn our world upside down in the way the early believers did.


I think that's why we're here.

Reason to Hope

In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul makes an incredible statement, he says, "And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.' (1 Cor. 15:17-19) The reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is of utmost importance to those who are followers of Jesus. It is the basis of our faith, our hope, and the life that we live.


Often we misrepresent, or, rather, mis-emphasise the resurrection in one of two ways. We either see resurrection as the promise of the future, the guarantee that one day we will experience what Jesus did, that death isn't the end of the story, that we will participate in what Tom Wright brilliantly calls, 'life after life-after-death.' This isn't a misrepresentation of resurrection, or the hope that Jesus' resurrection promises. Indeed Paul infers as much in the above chapter, but it isn't all or even the central point of the meaning of resurrection.


The other great vision of resurrection presented, particularly in the faith tradition I am a part of, is the power of the resurrection. This sees in the resurrection the power of God that is now at work in his people and available to his people. It emphasises the miraculous, interventionist activity of God and seeks to make them available in some way to believers as we negotiate this life. Again, I believe in a God who miraculously engages with his people and enables and empowers us to be effective ambassadors of his kingdom. But in many ways this falls short of recognising the life and world shattering reality represented by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.


When Jesus rose from the dead on that triumphant Sunday morning two thousand years ago (give or take a few) he was visibly evidencing and confirming the fact that the Kingdom of God had indeed come. The age of exile was over, the Age of Messiah was here, and God was reconciled to his people through his obedient servant, his Son, Jesus.


Christian hope is anchored in the present reality of the 'now-and-not-yet' kingdom of God. Proverbs 13:12 reminds us, 'Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.' The hope of the forgiveness, peace, reconciliation, justice and healing of the fully unveiled and consummated kingdom of God through his Christ is fulfilled in part - bringing life - through the now present experience of that kingdom. The eschatological future is brought into the present because Jesus rose from the dead. The price was paid, the battle was won, redemption is here, and the resurrection is the proof.


Paul's point isn't that hope is future - although it is. His point wasn't that hope is for now - although it is. Paul is dramatically challenging his readers that the presence of God's future reality is seen through his people as they live in the present truth of the kind of world and way of being human that was promised and actualised through the life, death and resurrection of the Son of God.


Jesus lived in a way that displayed what that life looks like, and in the Acts and letters of the New Testament each of the authors is reminding and correcting his readers to remember that their old way of living, the old age, died on the cross with Jesus and now this new and wonderful way of being and living and relating is possible because Jesus' resurrection validates his assertion that the kingdom of God is here and now.


Sounds great, so what? So we have been liberated from the slavery of sin and empowered to live in a way that demonstrates that it is true. You, me, all those who follow Christ and are part of this called out faith community can individually and corporately reject the way our world defines being human and living life and redefine it around Jesus. We can do it because the resurrection declares the kingdom age has begun and the Spirit has been given to help us and incrementally transform us into the image of the one who was God in the flesh. We might be human, but we are forgiven, redeemed, and Spirit filled humans, charged with the mission of expressing the love, grace and justice of God in our world.


The resurrection is my hope and confidence not only that there is something more beyond this life, but that what I do in this life matters. As Paul finishes 1 Cor. 15, 'Therefore my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labour in the Lord is not in vain.'

What should we do with what we have?

When I was watching television a couple of nights ago a preview for a show (one I don't watch) came on where one woman proudly told her friend the sunglasses she was wearing cost $25,000 (if you know the show, about housewives from a particular part of the US please note I don't watch it, only the previews). It seemed to me a lot of money for a pair of sunglasses, not only that someone would pay that much for them, but also that a retailer and presumably the manufacturer would deem them worth so much.


It's not just sunglasses though is it? On Top Gear (a show I do watch and love) the presenters road test super cars that can cost in excess of a million dollars; or contemporary fashion that values clothes, shoes and accessories in the tens of thousands; or hotel rooms that cost thousands per night; or food or wine or furniture or whatever..... There are a lot of things out there that cost a lot of money.


Jesus cared for the poor; he cares for the seven children every second that die of starvation; he cared enough to die for them and institute a community of people who were to be careless of their own prosperity and generously care for those who cannot care for themselves. Jesus called a group of people, gave them his Spirit, and commissioned them to represent him and his kingdom in this world until the day he returns to finally make all things right.


We, the church, may not wear $25,000 sunnies, but what do we do with the finances we are entrusted with by our Lord? I hear a lot of preaching about how God will make you rich (we use the term 'prosperous' because it doesn't sound so ungodly), and how this prosperity is so you can generously give to God (i.e. the church or ministry preaching to you) and then 'live the dream' (which is to fullfil our Western consumerist dream of 'the one who dies with the most stuff wins') Right now I sound harsh and judgmental, and maybe I am a bit, but I'm really calling for us, the church, to consider the example and mandate given to us by our Lord and re-orient our financial management around the people and causes that were important to Jesus.


I am not opposed to money, or to Christians having and making money. An impoverished community of faith doesn't do anyone any good and becomes part of the problem rather than the answer. I believe strongly in being able to meet the needs of your family friends, an attitude that was close to Paul's heart (see 1 Tim. 5:8) I really believe that Christians should work hard to be able to meet the needs of their family and then have enough left over to generously share with others.


As churches and pastors we have to make sure we are sending the right message. I hear often about 'a spirit of excellence' which means making sure that we give God the best. This is generally reflected in making sure he has the best possible PA system in the church, the best big screens and lights, the best seating and decor, the best 'green room' (dear God, where did that come from? Oh yeah, Hollywood....), and an attractive enough building so that people will see that God makes Christians rich and successful and want to join us.


I don't think God cares about any of that.


Market as we may, spin as we might, promote as we will, the fact remains that the cashed-up glammed-up Western church is becoming irrelevant in our culture. The sound and lights and seats and events that we enjoy have less to do with God and more to do with a feeling of accomplishment and achievement for ourselves. God doesn't need any of that, he can and has extended his kingdom and cared for his lost children without any of the above - and he did a good job of it.


I don't pastor a big church, we don't have lots of money or our own building, or any of the accessories that come with being 'successful.' Maybe it's because I'm not a good leader, I don't have the capacity to do more than I'm doing, or God knows that if I had all those things (like I used to really want to have) it would actually damage me and my congregation because of my pride and arrogance. Maybe, probably, it's a combination of all these things. I don't want to criticise the church of Jesus Christ, I love it, I just have a sneaking suspicion that many of the things we spend our money on are actually our version of $25,000 sunnies.


James is a disturbing book. It reminds us of God's attitude to money and the way we use it. James writes, 'Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit widows and orphans in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.' (Jas. 1:27) Caring for the needy, not the best stuff money can buy, rejecting the values of our culture, is the best way to display the presence and love of God through our communal lives. And those times we create special clubs for the people who give the most to the church, James reminds us that giving preferential treatment to the rich over the poor is not the way of Christ (Jas. 2:1-9 - wouldn't it be great if James just shut up?)


I think we need to give more thought to what we do with the resources we are given. Perhaps we don't need the newest technology or most spectacular event or most impressive buildings. Neither do we need to be among the world's poor and starving. Perhaps what is needed is to give life to this kingdom of love and grace by reaching out generously with the finances we have and seek to meet the needs of the poor and hurting in our world. Thank God for all we do, but how much more is there to do and how many more to care for?


My concern isn't what we have but what we do with what we have. How much of what we do is really for our own benefit. We might pretend that it is all for God, but in our hearts we know the truth. There is a world in a world of hurt, and the ones who have been commissioned to witness to the fact that there is a God who cares and has acted in the person of Jesus are busy becoming prosperous and successful.


I wonder if we are wearing our $25,000 sunnies, and if they are dimming the light of Christ to us and through us. The early church went bananas without the benefit of all that we have, maybe it's time for us to do the same.