Walking by Faith

Friends of The River,

Well, these past two weeks have been an exciting, yet very uncertain time in the life of this fledgling little church-plant in Ellensburg. For the past 18 months, in the midst of a seriously difficult time for the American, not to mention worldwide economy (can I get an amen?)... The River Church of the Nazarene has been learning how to stand on its own purely as a self-supporting, self-sustaining, self-funded, self-aware Christian ministry. And like a wobbling newborn calf struggling to stand up, it has not always been pretty, but I do believe we are beginning to gain some strength in our spiritual legs.

But Jesus calls us to do more than stand, right? At some point, almost every infant that was ever born grows bigger and stronger to become a toddler – learning how to walk, even run to where they desire to go. During our worship service last Sunday, my good friend Jim Carlson came to talk to us all about dreaming big dreams, overcoming the American religious disease of consumerism, carefully analyzing our priorities as kingdom citizens, and learning what it means to honor the Sabbath Day as cross-bearing, modern-day Christ-followers. Then a representative group our church board presented some factual, yet troubling and eye-opening numbers with everyone present. Certainly not your typical worship service!

Essentially, we as the pastor and his family have come to the conclusion – with God’s help – that we can no longer underwrite such a significant portion of the church’s ministry.  Either by faith or by ignorance (or both), we have managed to dig a financial hole that threatens to bury us if we continue down that path – which is definitely not the path of good stewardship or good citizenship. Trust me though… we certainly recognize the amazing generosity of some people that call The River their home. If it weren’t for a few deeply loyal families investing sacrificially and keeping this church financially afloat, our church would definitely not have been able to stay here as long as it has. But as a church body, The River has never been what would be generally considered an overly giving church… at least, not so far. But (hopefully anyway) our story together is not yet finished being written. Not even close.

In the next few days, “members” of The River (actually we have no formal membership at this point) will receive a letter explaining our need for “pledge cards” to be filled out and turned back in to the board by Sunday June 17. If you are a frequent visitor, and have any love for the church that is The River, then I implore you to read the letter very carefully, pray unceasingly, talk with your significant other (when applicable), and fill out the pledge card as an act of faith, knowing that the future of our crazy, mixed up, often dysfunctional… and yet wonderfully awesome church body is directly tied to the larger group’s financial commitment from this point forward.

We have big dreams, goals and vision for this little corner of the world. We want to be a vessel for God to bring revival and brilliant light to a lost and wounded… and dark place. But before we can fly on wings like eagles… first, we’re going to have to learn how to walk and not be faint. A significant breakthrough is right there for the taking. I know it is. It’s in our grasp, and most of us can feel it in our bones. 

But let's be honest - it will take a seriously giant act of faith on our part. Aren’t you glad we serve a God who does miracles? A God who provides? A God who know our heart… and loves us anyway? A God who calls His people, empowers them to share the kingdom message, and destroys the enemy who roams the earth seeking to steal and kill and destroy? Let’s not let the enemy win. Let’s keep this adventure going. Let’s be like Peter, who, upon seeing Jesus walking on Lake Galilee said, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.” And he did! Okay, it’s true… he only took a few steps before he began to sink like a lead balloon… but think about it… Peter WALKED ON WATER!!! Wouldn’t you like to do that just once in your life? Wouldn’t you like to defy logic, and the law of gravity, and all doubt, and confound the senses… by reaching out in faith and following Jesus?

You can. I believe we’re at THE pivotal time in the life of our church. We can either step out of the boat and walk, like Peter. Or we can stay in the boat like the other disciples, and never know what it’s like to really live in that moment. God doesn’t call us to be safe… He calls us to live dangerously. The question is… do we have what it takes to obey?

Also, if you consider yourself to be a friend of The River, and would like to help ensure that we can meet our financial mandates by “pledging” an ongoing monthly amount with us, or through a one-time gift to our church – please let me know and I’ll be sure to contact you... with glee. Again, our all-important deadline is less than two weeks away, June 17.

Thank you everyone, for giving my family the high privilege of serving these past five years as the pastoral family of The River. Regardless of what happens from here… may the seeds that have been planted through this experience continue to spread, take root, and grow to become mighty oaks of righteousness in this place… and spread to the outer parts of the world!

Amen… may it be so!

Weekend-Free Church

Text relating to the Vision Conversation at The River this Sunday: 

1 Corinthians 9:19-23

This coming month is a special one to me and my family. It marks the five-year anniversary of our leaving Kansas City and moving to Ellensburg to start The River Community Church of the Nazarene. Wow... five years. In some ways it seems like only yesterday. But in most ways it seems like it has been 20 years... at least I think I've aged 20 years (and gained 20 pounds!)  :-)  It's like Ellensburg is caught in a time-warp continuum that slows down actual time. I'll have to consult my Star Trek handbook... but maybe that means the earth revolves around the sun slower here in the Pacific Northwest? Hmmmm... anyway, next month we celebrate five years since stepping foot in the little town both Jill and I once called home. For me, it was my hometown from birth till I turned 25ish. For Jill, it is the place she attended high school... nothing more. She stubbornly refuses to claim the Burg has her hometown!  :-)

Anyway... It's been a wonderful, awesome experience. And yet, it's been the biggest challenge we've ever faced before... ever... either as individuals and as a married couple. Who wouda thunk...? We've somehow made it this long in the ministry! Obviously, the folks at this church haven't figured out how nuts we  are... I guess love really is blind!

Nevertheless, in celebration of our five-year mark... we at The River are looking to stir up the status-quo once again. We've seen some amazing things over the years... we've made some great friends, and accomplished some fun projects, and experienced some powerful manifestations of God's Spirit in our midst. We've lost a few people along the way (who would've ever guessed not everyone would appreciate our unique style?)... and ultimately we've grown and evolved into a tight-knit group of Jesus followers, who love God and love one another. All in all, we love our church body... and hope and pray we can continue to do ministry here for a very long time to come.

But after such a long time back in my 'hood' preaching the Word and hoping people will repent and believe in Jesus as Lord and Master of their lives... and after keenly observing a direct relationship between the weather outside and butts in the seats of our Sunday morning services inside... I have come to a startling realization: People want to worship God together... the disciples of Jesus really do want to gather together and sing, pray, wrestle with Scripture, give, partake of Communion, baptize, laugh, cry, serve... and they really do want to experience God in the community of other believers. However, many of them don't want to do so if it cuts in to their other lifestyle priorities. What other priorities you ask...? Well, anything good and some even not so good... things like family gatherings and visits, baseball games, camping trips, water-skiing, hiking, shopping, snow-shoeing, swimming, basketball games, track and field events, football games, tournaments, visiting friends, marathons, 5ks, shooting, hunting, out-of-town vacations, boating, fishing... do you get the picture? We live in an area of the world where you can experience an almost endless variety of outdoor experiences... and let's face it, weekends are a premium in calendars jam-packed with work, household chores, kids' activities... so the idea of attending a 1-2 hour Sunday morning worship service - even if the basic desire is there - can all too easily get kicked to the curb when competing with so many other important activities. How do we deal with such powerful competition?

One day a couple of years ago... a guy rode into town on his big ole Harley, and stepped up to the coffee bar at The River (which used to be open during the week), and asked, "I'm looking for Jeff Harmon. Is he here?"


"Yes," I said... a bit hesitantly (hey, he's a big guy!), "that's me."


Geez... as it turned out, we talked all stinkin' day about ministry stuff. Something like three hours later... after taking this mystery man in leathers to Rossow's to experience the essence of Ellensburg fine-dining... Jim Carlson got back on his Harley and continued his ride back to Spokane. But the things he planted in my head that day have never gone away. He raised the crazy notion that people have so many other priorities on a typical Sunday... maybe a progressive church like The River should consider offering a mid-week worship service and see where it goes? Think about it... how many students leave for home on the weekends? How many people work on Sundays? How many of our own people take off for the lake (or the city, or the hills, or the...) for the weekend, and would appreciate a mid-week service, so they could enjoy their weekend without the associated guilt of missing "church"? How many people are allergic to Sundays, but may consider a mid-week worship service? Hmmm... good questions. What if we stopped doing what everyone else does (just because)... and paid careful attention to how the culture functions in this little corner of the world? What if we stopped doing the "religious" thing... and, like Paul, "Become all things to all people so that by all possible means I (we) might save some." 

Oh... but is it right to move the high and holy event of worshiping God to a mere weeknight, just to accommodate the busy (and sometimes slightly off-center priorities) of people who seek (in theory) to be sold-out disciples of Jesus Christ? Is it okay to mess with the "Sabbath" rest of Sunday morning worship? Would people really come to a full-blown worship service on a Thursday night in this town? What would that do to Sunday morning gatherings? Would we abandon Sunday morning altogether... or have two services? If we had two services, wouldn't that mean we have two churches meeting under the same roof? How would that work out? Holy cow (pardon the pun... but sometimes we have to look at our sacred cows and be ready to slaughter them)! This is confusing, huh? Is it right? Is it acceptable to God? Would it be successful? (Just what defines "successful" in the church, anyway?) Is a mid-week service worth the effort? Is it worth the risk? What would other churches say ? Would they be offended? Would they steal our thunder? How the heck do we know whether this is a good or bad thing for us?

My answer: Let's ask Jim. He'll be our special guest this Sunday... and I for one would love to hear his take on how we could go about reaching more people for Christ in this town. Personally, I love the idea of letting people do their family thing... or their sports thing... or their camping thing... or whatever, without the typical response of heavy-duty pastoral guilt (and fear of what it would mean if people actually had options for worship). But IF we give it a shot... then the real questions would begin. You know, questions like HOW? How do we stretch our already limited resources? How do we promote it to the community? How do we know how to measure the results of our trial? How long do we conduct this grand experiment? And the list goes on... and on... and on.

Got some of your own questions to ask him? Great... git yer butt to Sunday service this week... (ya, I know it's June and the lake is calling... but make the sacrifice, ok?)... and be ready to stretch your thinking in terms of what it means to be a Christ-centered community that is willing to become all things to all people for the sake of the gospel. And one more thing: Bring your best Mexican dish... 'cause after the service, we're having an all-important church meeting... and a Mexican-themed potluck for the ages! PLEASE don't miss this service if at all possible, okay? Don't worry... there are plenty of other Sunday services you can bail on this summer... especially as the weather gets nicer!  :-)

See ya'll then! 

The Value of a Brick

Text relating to the sermon at The River this Sunday is Exodus 5:4-14

 ⁴ But the king of Egypt said, “Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? Get back to your work!” ⁵ Then Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now numerous, and you are stopping them from working.”

 ⁶ That same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and overseers in charge of the people: ⁷ “You are no longer to supply the people with straw for making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. ⁸ But require them to make the same number of bricks as before; don’t reduce the quota. They are lazy; that is why they are crying out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ ⁹ Make the work harder for them so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies.”

 ¹⁰ Then the slave drivers and the overseers went out and said to the people, “This is what Pharaoh says: ‘I will not give you any more straw. ¹¹ Go and get your own straw wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced at all.’” ¹² So the people scattered all over Egypt to gather stubble to use for straw. ¹³ The slave drivers kept pressing them, saying, “Complete the work required of you for each day, just as when you had straw.” ¹⁴ And Pharaoh’s slave drivers beat the Israelite overseers they had appointed, demanding, “Why haven’t you met your quota of bricks yesterday or today, as before?” 

So... it seems that bricks were of more value to Pharaoh than people. How sad. I once worked for a person like that... very briefly thank goodness. People meant nothing to him, that is except they were a means to an end. His own end of course - which was the same end as Pharaoh's - to build wealth and influence for himself. Yuk... so glad I'm out of Egypt. Slavery sucks!

But back to my original point :-)  To this Egyptian king in the days of Moses, the Israelite people living in his country had no real value... except that together they made a very populous and efficient brick-making machine that required very little investment or overhead. That is, nothing more than some vicious slave drivers, lots of straw, huts in which to house the slaves, and enough food to keep them alive. What a deal for Pharaoh! He could build a lot of magnificent structures with that otherwise worthless group of people. As a bonus, toward the end he even made them collect their own straw with the same quotas!

But God said otherwise. His chosen people had value... not because they deserved it, and not due to their brick-making ability... but purely and simply because He said so. So, through Moses, God told Pharaoh to let His people go. And, after a well-documented bit of difficulty, Pharaoh finally caved in to God's demands and set God's people free.

Free. No longer slaves. Cared for. Watched over. Protected. Nurtured... Loved.

The Israelites had no idea what freedom looked like. They had been nothing more than a 20+ hours per day, seven days per week brick-making machine for over four hundred years!

But God didn't make people to be machines... He made people to reflect His glory. Yes, He made people to be productive... that is, to be fruitful and multiply. But more than that, He made people to exercise their freedom to regularly stop their work in order to remember their reason for living... that is, first and foremost, humans were made to relate to their God. 

How can we do that if all we ever do is make bricks?

It's tough for some of us to stop working... stop producing... stop trying to earn our way into the good graces of other people, or other gods. But from the seventh day of creation... God has made it clear that resting from our everyday kind of work is what He wants... what He commands... what He absolutely expects from us.

Somewhere in our frantic, busy lives, God expects us to rest... makes it clear that we are to prioritize a rhythm of rest from our labor. 

The biblical term for this spiritual discipline is Sabbath.

God worked six days when He created the universe and rested on the seventh day. Why? Was He tired? Was He out of breath? Was He a union member? Or was He providing a pattern for living that He wants us to follow? Hmmmmm... perhaps He actually meant us to follow a rhythm of hard work, followed by intentional rest. Perhaps when we obey His teachings, we can actually live a more joy-filled life... a more peaceful life... a more full life? A more complete life?

Well, anyway... it's something to think about. And something to discuss... this Sunday... on the (Christian) day of Sabbath... at The River (or some other place of Christ-centered worship). That is, unless you're unable to put down the mud and straw long enough to celebrate His work of redeeming us from slavery! :-)

I gotta rest now. All this blogging makes me tired!

Lectio Divina

Text relating to the sermon/discussion at The River this Sunday: John 8:1-11 TNIV

• A woman caught in adultery.
• Guilty woman... possibly set up to fail.
• Bloodthirsty Pharisees... trying to set yet another trap.
• Jesus... always an astonishing answer.
• A case of legal imperative, or deep introspection?
• She made a mistake... but received forgiveness.
• The religious leaders just walked away... frustrated.
• Jesus confounded the wise, and set her free... using less than 30 words.
• What Satan meant to use for harm, God made beautiful.
• What character do you most identify with?

Each week, I give you a link to the biblical text, assuming you'll click on it and read it for yourself. But today, I'm going to give you the full text... and encourage you to soak it in for awhile. Let it speak to you.

This Sunday, we're going to employ an ancient method of interacting with Scripture that involves far more than your intellect. It is called Lectio Divina, and if you're willing to quiet yourself and listen to what He's saying... God will reveal Truth into your heart in fresh new ways through this approach.

Are you ready? Good... then first is LECTIO (reading). Read through the text slowly, carefully repetitively. Pay attention to details that you normally miss when you skim over a text. Don't rush. Pray over the text and ask God to show you new details you've never noticed before.

¹ but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
   ² At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. ³ The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group ⁴ and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. ⁵ In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” ⁶ They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.
   But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. ⁷ When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” ⁸ Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
   ⁹ At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. ¹⁰ Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
   ¹¹ “No one, sir,” she said.

   “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”

Have you read it a few times through? Did you pay careful attention to details such as who, what, where and when?  Good, the next phase is MEDITATIO (meditation). Read the text through once again, but this time seek to listen with your heart as well as your mind. Know that through this text, Jesus wants to reveal Himself more fully to you. So consciously open yourself to the Lord. Are you the woman who is guilty (and in need of pardon)? Or a member of the religious council, unwilling to forgive a dirty "sinner"? Perhaps you can relate to both characters? What does God want to say to you through this story?

The third phase is ORATIO (prayer). Okay, God has spoken to you. He has revealed something to you... encouragement that comforts you, or a warning that rattles you a bit. Say a prayer to God, thanking Him for shining His light into your heart, and speaking to you, His child.  Let Him know you're listening, and you desire to walk in alignment with His will. For a few moments, just abandon yourself to soaking in God's holy presence, and admiring His grace.

The fourth and final phase of Lectio Divina is CONTEMPLATIO (contemplation). This is God's response to us. After praying to Him, simply wait on the Holy Spirit to breathe resurrection life into your soul.  Believe and expect that God wants to whisper in your ear as you open your heart to His all-knowing gaze. It may be something you can wrap your head around, and then again, you may just walk away having encountered a deep, intimate moment with the Savior. Either way, know that God has used your willingness to read, meditate, pray and contemplate His words for His glory and for your benefit. He wants to shape you into the image of His Son, and this ancient spiritual discipline is an excellent way to learn how to surrender your will to His.

Okay, now let's see how we can encounter Him in an entirely new way as we practice Lectio Divina together this coming Sunday!

I Have Been With You...

Okay, so we're a bit late to start the Easter season at The River... but Hey, better late than never, right? Over the next five weeks, we'll hone in on the implications of Resurrection Sunday... this week's focus is on God as a personal being.

Here is the text relating to the sermon/discussion this Sunday: 2 Samuel 7:1-17

 Is God personal? I mean, you hear it all the time, right...

"I don't have a religion... I have a personal relationship with God."

But what does that mean, exactly? This morning at our bi-weekly men's breakfast, affectionately known as "Nude Pagan Society"(actually it's New Canaan Society), the question came up this very morning... Just exactly what does it mean to have a personal relationship with God? Can He be seen? (Not by anyone I know.) Can He be heard? (Only in subtle ways that could be construed as subjective.) Is He my friend? (Uh... perhaps in a sense, but then again, how can mere humanity and an eternal, self-existing, unfathomable being of sheer power become buddies?) Are we equals? (Oh, heck no!) Does He love us wacky humaniod creatures... even in our sinful, self-destructive, and utterly stubborn fickle-ness? (Yes... according to the Bible, He loves shamelessly, sacrificially, emphatically, and relentlessly!)

So how does the jumbled chex-mix of descriptions and questions above answer our initial question... is God personal? If so, how? What exactly has to take place in order for us to "get personal" with the Creator of the universe? Is it something we do as humans? Does it have to come from God? Where do God and people have to intersect in order to establish some form of relationship with one another?


I have a definite answer... at least it's my answer. Are you ready? Here it is...


I don't know.


Really. I don't know. Its' a deep mystery beyond my ability to understand, much less articulate. I guess the biblical answer is grace... that is, unmerited favor.


God, in His mercy, somehow determined to love us... all of us... for reasons that boggle the human mind. As such, He reaches out to us, and offers to forgive our sins, and restore us to our pre-Adamic righteous standing before Him. Though we are born into this life completely lost, wandering, bound up, and dying in our sins... nevertheless, He unilaterally comes to us and offers to free us from the prison of flesh. He offers life... He offers freedom... He offers salvation... He offers all of Himself to those who will listen. There is only one catch beyond the willingness to accept the gift. Just one, simple, relatively small requirement in order to fulfill our part of the covenant: Walk by faith... that is, trust Him with all of who you are, obey His commands, and release your life - all of your life - to Him, in order to be molded shaped into His image... by His Spirit.


That's what David did. David was a man after God's own heart.


Was David perfect in everything he said and did? Heavens no.


But was David "perfect" in his passionate love of (and passionate willingness to align himself with) God's ways? Oh yes... most definitely! David had a "personal relationship" with God. David had amazing faith in the goodness and trustworthiness of the Lord of Hosts. In all he knew how to express it, David went all out for God every moment of every day. And God loved David's heart!


David was a violent, murderous, cheating sinner of a man who deserved death... just like the rest of us. But instead, God gave him a full life... real life... eternal life. That's just what friends do!


Is God your friend? Does your heart beat with the Lord's? Does He love your passion for the kingdom? Does His favor (unmerited favor) rest upon you as it did so powerfully on David? 


If so... then good for you!


If not... why not? Is there something God needs to do first...? Or do you need to look deep within your own heart, and ask what is interfering with your "personal relationship" with Him? He wants to speak to you, you know. He wants to reveal Himself to you in profound new ways. He wants to bless you beyond your ability to imagine. But He won't force Himself. Instead, he patiently waits for you to return, and seek His face. He's in no hurry... In fact, He's got all the time in the world.  :-)

Redeemed

This week's blog posting is - and the sermon will be - by Paul Goebel. Thanks to him, I am able to take a week off at The River. Thanks, Paul!

Text: Colossians 1:13-14

Broken, a mess, dead in sin, a sinner, lukewarm, rascal, empty, unrighteous, distant from our Father…the list goes on. These are all terms I’ve heard used by pastors and others referring to us as Christians in our walks of faith. While much of it might be true at a certain level, I believe that we often can use these definitions as a means of justifying the behaviors that would be consistent with these terms. “If I’m broken, then sin can’t help but overcome me”. As broken people, sin, and distance from our Father, Savior, and Spirit, becomes justified actions when we consider ourselves as sinners. 

Ruth, Leviticus, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, James, and numerous (really numerous) references in Paul’s writings essentially tell us what Paul says in Colossians: “For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption…”

So, we are no longer broken, we are no longer dead in sin, we are no longer unrighteous if we truly believe in Jesus. We are REDEEMED now, not tomorrow, not when we die, not at some point when we truly grow up. Jesus did not die “halfway” to save us from death, he was “all in” and died completely to save us. Therefore, we are not partially redeemed, we are not lukewarm, we are no longer broken, if we truly believe in Jesus, we are 100% and completely WHOLE. Not redeemed some of the time and not redeemed others, not redeemed when we come to church, not redeemed just when we pray. Every breath, every moment, every day, we are redeemed in Him.

It is time to start thinking and acting like whole followers of Jesus. It is time to take the strength and consistency of redemption into every day, every moment, every relationship. It isn’t time to think of ourselves as broken, the urgency of redemption and salvation tell us to live as redeemed followers of Christ, this day, this moment.

When I think of myself as broken, I am broken and so tempted by sin. When I consider myself redeemed, my decisions and actions change completely. The strength that comes to me when I decide that I am redeemed is truly amazing, truly life changing. It changes the way I look at life, the “filter” is completely different. It makes me realize that, even though my body is broken, sick, dying, diseased, and finite, my spirit is fully and wholly ALIVE in a risen Savior. What a truly simple and beautiful realization that is.

Embrace Diversity

One of a few Scriptural texts relating to the sermon this Sunday at The River: Acts 10:9-48

Embrace Diversity.

Hmmm... kind of sounds like a bumper sticker you'd see pasted on a '68 VW Van, or a 2011 Subaru Outback, or an '89 Ford Fiesta, right? In other words, it sounds like something a whacked-out liberal, weed-smoking hippie would tell people: Embrace Diversity, Co-exist... or yes, even Love Wins.

(Okay, so not all Subaru owners are hippies!) Anyway - before I get waaay off track - the point I want to make in all this is that Jesus of Nazareth embraced diversity in a profound way... a long, long time before Woodstock and Zig Zags and dreadlocks came along. As the Son of God - Creator of all things and all people - Jesus loved everyone in the whole world. He was even willing to suffer at the hands of evil men and die to show us just how much he loves humanity. How much more of an "embrace"can you get than stretching your arms across a rough-hewn, wooden instrument of cruel death?

As far as I can tell, Jesus only saw people in one of two ways: those who hungered and thirsted for God, and were desperate for the Lord... and those who  didn't and therefore weren't. As for any other demographics, Jesus didn't seem to worked up about whether they were Jew or Gentile, rich or poor, man or woman, sick or healthy, young or old. The only unit of measure he used was hot or cold (and varying degrees of lukewarm) in terms of their faith in the Father. Some of us seem to come to the realization that we're sinners in need of a Savior, and some of us never do. It's perplexing to me how we could be so utterly messed up and not cry out for help... but that's the reality we live in.

Now dont' get me wrong - Jesus came to reveal God to the Jews, the chosen people of Israel first. But that didn't stop the Lord from healing a Roman Centurion's servant, or discussing worship with a Samaritan woman, or healing a Syrophoenician woman's daughter.  All humans are made in the image of Almighty God... and all of us are given the opportunity to accept the gift of grace that is continually offered to us in a soft, still voice... the voice of the Holy Spirit. No threat, no coercion... just an offer to salvage us from our pride leading to eternal death.

But, here's a question worthy of pondering...

What is the difference between embracing diversity, and compromising our biblical beliefs? What is more important... "tolerating" everyone in the name of peace and respect? Or holding firm to our desire to agree with God when he calls something evil, and when he calls something good? In other words, is it more important to embrace diversity no matter what? Or embrace the Truth of God's Word no matter what?

The following quote was pulled from the website, embracediversity.net

EMBRACE DIVERSITY

was created in 2002 to spread a positive message of tolerance for all people, regardless of their race, class, gender, religion, politics or sexual orientation.In an increasingly connected yet diverse world, understanding other cultures and perspectives is more important than ever.

Man, I want to "embrace" that philosophy... I really do. And at The River, we adhere to that basic principle in our desire to remain "eclectic". Within some degree of reason, everyone is welcome to come to our worship services and explore their faith in Jesus Christ. However there's only one problem: If we're not wise and discerning, the philosophy of tolerance can elevate people and/or lifestyle over and above God's will for his special creation.

God loves us where we are... he really does. But, as you've probably heard before, he loves us too much to allow us to stay there! He wants more for us than what society wants for us. He wants to set us free from sin... lead us to a new life set apart for his glory. He wants to give us new desires, new dreams, new passions, new ways of worshiping and serving... Basically, he wants to transform our heart, renew our mind, and enliven our spirit to walk in deep fellowship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

There is SO much room for diversity within the Law of God's Spirit. Humanity is so utterly complex and beautiful. Some of what we are together is God's mysterious design of unity in the midst of diversity... and yet some of it is sin... varying forms of pride, selfishness, angst, violence, inaccurate understanding of identity, propensity toward toxic activities and relationships... anything that falls short of God's glory is what Jesus came to rescue us from.

So how do we do it? How do we embrace diversity without embracing sin? How do we welcome people walking in darkness into our community of light? Put in modern vernacular, how do we love the sinner but not the sin? How do we honor God without alienating the culture around us in which we live? How do we preach the good news to sinners if we write them off as unworthy of our time and/or respect? How does a church community embrace diversity without compromising our deeply rooted beliefs about sin and salvation?

Would a Muslim feel welcome at The River? If so, why... because we talk to him or her as a person loved by God...? a Father-inspired creation...? A sacred life in need of the Way and Truth and Life? Or would that Muslim feel judged...? awkward...? Unwelcome? How about a Mormon? Or a Wiccan? Or a heavily tattooed, 300 lb. guy with 54 piercings on his body? Or someone who smells like urine? Or someone with bad teeth and horrendous breath? Or...

Would we embrace diversity then? Or would we all of a sudden become "churchy" in our attitude? Would we seek to know them even though they're obviously different...? Or stick to our friends and hope they eventually go away? Would we invest ourselves in them at all... or write them off as trash?

... Or, in the name of tolerance... would we embrace anyone and everyone... and never dare come to the place where we truly show them love by confronting the ways in which they are falling short of God's glory? Never discern, and therefore speak up about a lifestyle and/or system of belief that keeps them residing in darkness?

Oh, God... please help us - both as individuals and as a corporate body - to love what you love, hate what you hate, preach what you preached, invest in what you invested in, fight against what you fought against, and love all people in the way you loved and continue to love all of your people. May we saturate ourselves in your word, remain in fellowship with you, stick close together in Christian community... and collectively... love our neighbors as ourselves. Amen.