Leaning Forward

OK, reach out and touch someone---

So, I attended a meeting the other day and everybody in the building was fiddling with their Blackberry devices or iPhones---sending text messages, checking e-mails, scanning calendars, Googling topics, or playing Brick-Breaker. That's when it hit me! The crackberry thing is true. What we have here is another disorder reaching pandemic levels. Maybe it's time to add Crackberry addiction to our Celebrate Recovery list, you know, a step study for this new wave of junkies. 

Of course, I had heard the term "crackberry". It's another one of the new colloquialisms, terms generated by the times. But, I must've missed the day it was defined by the venerable old standard, the Urban Dictionary. You can only imagine my relief at discovering it wasn't an anatomical reference, a new street term for the in-your-pocket maneuvers many of the text-messaging pros use in covert ops, like during church services. Whew! What a relief! There for a while I thought I was listening to some new age profanity. Glad my mother wasn't standing close by.

In 2001, several generations ago in technological innovation, the Nokia Global Messaging Survey actually declared text messaging to possess addictive characteristics. These findings were confirmed by a study by the Catholic University in Leuven Belgium in 2004, and since then by the University of Queensland in Australia. This work stated that text-messaging is the most addictive digital service on mobile networks, equivalent to being hooked on cigarettes. Supposedly, the SMS and MMS formats create a co-dependency called "reachability". You got to be kidding me! For real. Records from the providers indicate that 1 trillion---yes, that would be trillion---text messages were sent in 2008. That would be 3.5 billion every single day. This thing is big.

Underneath this technological development may actually be a growing cultural psychosis, a fear of being alone or isolated or out of touch or excluded. New twists in social networking offer a variety of relational connections to people whose circles would otherwise be relatively small. There are even Second Life sites that enable personality and cosmetic sculpting, designed to enhance ones attractiveness to others. It's the twenty-first century world of relationships and connections. And, really, it's not the "crackberry" thing anyway. We're not addicted to the gadgets, the tools of this new trade. The more genuine need is approval, inclusion, being part of a group, human contact, a little love. Anybody need a hug?

IN 1984, AT & T did an ad campaign with essentially the same theme. They said, "reach out and touch someone". Even before that Americans were experiencing the distance of a more technological world. Diana Ross released "Reach Out and Touch Somebody's Hand", a number one hit that echoed the mobility and anonymity of Technopolis---The Secular City envisioned by theologian author Harvey Cox. This new compulsion, text-messaging, is just another way of fulfilling something noted at creation. When all of creation was completed, God himself said, "It is not good for man to be alone..." (Genesis 2:18).

So, we banged on logs, lit mountain-top fires, used mirrors, deployed runners, sent smoke signals, visited on Sundays, learned semaphore, mailed letters, dispatched telegrams, made phone calls, sent e-mails, and learned to text. It's the brave new world...of reaching out to touch someone.

Incredible. What a world!

Formatted to fit your screen

OK, there's a scientific element to this screen formatting stuff. I'm a little fuzzy about screen size ratios and all the other technical adjustments needed to fit a wide-screen motion picture to a basically square television set. I do know this, though. Something drastic has to occur to make the rectangle of the wide-screen fit the lines of a standard  old-fashioned TV.  So, it's not rocket science. Still, it's a little complicated for someone who had trouble with math after the fifth grade. If you're interested in the official language and science of this conversion process, click here for a better explanation. 

Let me tell you, re-formatting things to make them fit the radar screen of contemporary morality is a huge temptation to those of us who are answering the call to reach younger people. The shocking spiritual demographics regarding gen x and y have compelled some of us preacher types and a few congregations to reach into the younger cohorts with the message entrusted to our stewardship. Let me tell you first hand: this is not as simple a transition as it may first appear. In the process, many well-intended people have metaphorically modified the message to fit the presumed smaller screen desired by the younger people.

This, of course, is a fatal error, the blue screen of death for churches seeking to breach the chasm. The reason is obvious. Younger believers don't have a small screen mind-set. Of a truth, they don't want the message of truth trimmed or adjusted to accommodate some lesser God or minimized belief system. Looking for the silver bullet, many congregations and leaders will hack off the spiritual themes out on the edges of faith to make the message fit what they perceive to be the reduced capacity of their audience. And, this is not the answer.

A new delivery system that places the Good News in it's fullness on the wide-screen tableau of a revitalized and reformatted church is the answer. We don't need to abbreviate or truncate the message. Rather, we need a wide-screen approach that projects the old, old story, in all it's glory and fullness to an unreached people group who are searching for truth and depth. Shoot, they don't want the abridged version, with all the questionable scenes edited out. The clippings around the editor's table should be the churchy language and man-imposed traditions that impede the transmission of the truth, not the truth itself.

This is a truly a hard adjustment for many seasoned communicators and congregations, to develop new systems and vocabularies and images to fit the pana-vision of youthful spiritual expectations. On the other hand, many young preachers and ministries are doing just that, and attracting hordes of younger believers in the process. We should applaud them, rejoice with them, perhaps mimic them in some ways. At the same time, many existing congregations need a buy in to this wide-screen world, unlearn some old habits and systems in the process, while learning the joys of connecting in new, exciting ways. Shoot, the younger heads around our place remind me almost every day to adjust the screen settings on my lap-top so I can project the message in a wide-screen format. That's the deal. Adjust the screen, and not the message.

Then we won't need to begin every service with the disclaimer: this message has been modified from its original version. It has been formatted to fit your screen. 

Anyway, that adjusted message is really no message at all.

Personal Growth by Osmosis

Didn't you know? Expertise, knowledge, leadership, and wisdom can be accumulated by osmosis these days. Witness the subtle sarcasm of the Holiday Inn Express TV ads, where ordinary people who have stayed in a Holiday Inn Express can perform brain surgery or play concertos at Carnegie Hall. The implication of course is that people with the brain power to stay in a Holiday Inn Express are smart enough to do just about anything. Shoot, I've stayed in a Holiday Inn Express many times and am still just plain and ordinary in every way. Chop-sticks is about it for me on the piano, and well, brain surgery is brain surgery after all.

OK, it's just an advertising campaign thought up in the bull-pen of cracker-jack minds brainstorming the hotel bidness. But, what makes it so good is the way it mimics life. We get a good laugh out of it because it is so true. Today, people gain status by some strange biological morphing that transmits their knowledge and attainments in one sphere to equal or greater standing in another. It's the new osmosis, a little info being multiplied exponentially and beamed to other brain cells to establish authority in new venues. Success in one venue equals standing in another.

Like some Hollywood types for example. Granted, they receive big bucks for their movies, obscene payouts for living in la la land if you ask me. Voila! Suddenly, this movie star, who may not even have a high school education, is an expert in thermo-nuclear warfare, meteorology, or international relations. So, Susan Sarandon can speak with authority on our mistreatment of terrorists and state department policies re: Hugo Chavez. It's the osmosis thing, see. Because she makes big bucks and hits the red carpet once in a while she can speak with authority about global warming, the economic impact of NAFTA on immigration in California, or the unionization of Wal-Mart. Go figure.

This phenomena occurs in just about every arena of human interface. Shoot, Bill Maher, a pretty mediocre stand-up comedian, is now the go-to man about anything political. Hardy har har! That is funny stuff. Wayne Rogers, of MASH fame and other cinematic successes, is a Wall Street tycoon. Want to understand the tension in the Middle East? Talk to Sean Penn or George Clooney. They've made movies about Iraq and Afghanistan so they are now consultants to the State Department. Osmosis, kids. That's the new expert maker.

The king of power and reputation transfer may be Donald Trump. Shoot, kids, he sits on numerous corporate boards, judges beauty pageants, consults any number of companies, and stars on several TV programs, even appearing in advertisements endorsing a wide variety of products. He's a human dictionary, the fount of all encompassing knowledge about any subject on earth. He's made millions, lost a fortune in real estate, rebounds from financial disasters, and has opinions about everything. Well, maybe not. The hair industry isn't asking his advice. Doesn't cramp his style too much though. 

This thing happens in our world too, you know, the world of spiritual stuff and the church. Pastors, of which I are one, are all-Americans in the know-it-all sport. Most pastors are well-read, just as often well-educated, sometimes well spoken, and most usually well-rounded. Because we tend to deal with many different kinds of people from a variety of disciplines, we can usually enter any discussion and are not afraid to go after just about any topic. To speak with authority is a natural motif. Of course, being trained to speak with authority from the Bible is not the same as speaking with authority about subjects outside of a particular area of study. I mean, just because I have a theological or ministry education and know my way around Scripture doesn't mean I can discuss Egyptology or quantum physics. My accounting degree doesn't qualify me to advise families about the electrical circuitry of their new home. Being the spiritual leader of a growing, impacting congregation doesn't give any of us entree into hospital administration or any of the other specialities of life. I mean, get a life, will you!  

Personal growth is a matter of discipline, not osmosis. It is not automatic and does not leak through our pores from other people or pursuits. Being a disciple of Jesus is like that too, a process that defines our relationship to him, and not the medals and awards and degrees we may pick up along the way. You can be the coolest guy around and still not speak Swahili, the finest gourmand in the neighborhood and still not have a green thumb, be able to recite the entire book of 1 Chronicles and still not be much of Christ follower. You can have three Ph.D.s from MIT and still not grasp the sonnets of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, or have twenty-seven Sunday School medals and still not be a disciple of Jesus.

And, you can stay in a Holiday Inn Express and still not know what day it is.

Go figure.

 

What you get with a set of ratchet wrenches---

An old friend of mine became a believer when he went to church to receive a set of ratchet wrenches. No kidding. He was one of these cynical people who had attended church when he was a young person but had gotten burned when someone at church scolded him about long hair and hippie clothes back in the sixties. But, one week a local congregation called to tell him about their latest scheme. They were giving a set of ratchet wrenches to the first 100 people at church that week. He went down, camped in the Church parking lot, received his free set of wrenches, and during the service answered Christ's call to salvation.

Another pal received the gift of eternal life through the bus ministry of a local church. Now, he attended only for the little bag of candy they distributed to the riders and the shiny new quarter the bus captain slipped to him every Sunday morning. One Sunday he also received the gift of God's grace and is now eternally His. More than that, he pastor's a church in North Carolina.

Shoot kids, churches have been using schemes and gimmicks to place people under the Gospel for many years. Magicians, power teams, parachutists, dinner theaters, concerts, evangelists, movie nights, auto clinics, motorcycle ministries, fall and spring carnivals, marriage enrichment seminars, counseling centers, recovery ministries, camps, give-aways, and ratchet wrenches---just to mention a few of the ways churches seek to draw a crowd.

What is more, motives for attending church are not always that sacred either. People attend for equally diverse and often unholy reasons. Build a list with me---to be seen, to show off something new, to meet a potential life partner, to play in the band, to associate with other people, to add a line item on the personal resume, to receive a free meal, to be entertained by the music or the stand-up preacher, in search of answers for complicated life issues, to get a moment of peace and rest while the kids are in the nursery, free t-shirts, a good cup of coffee, the air-conditioned facilities. Keep going---

I read about a guy who took a gun to church so he could kill the man his wife was tangled with in a lurid affair. They all got saved that day, plus the other wife. Two marriages were reconciled in the process. As they say in Pumpkintown, ain't God good?

This is the Lord's day and many of us will gather. Our Saturday and Sunday worship and ministry teams have rehearsed to guide our worship experiences. Ron and I have prepared a message from the Bible text God has impressed on my heart. People will gather from many walks of life and for a variety of reasons. Expectations will vary with the unique needs in peoples lives. And, the Word of God will not return empty, but will accomplish fully what He intends with it.

And, we'll be there, good motives and bad, earthen vessels hoping to be used by God for His eternal purpose.

Maybe a new set of ratchet wrenches too.

Decisons, decisions, decisions

OK, kids, let skim the shallow waters of the mundane and ridiculous on this here Saturday morning. Here's the deal. The Citadel Bulldogs open at home tonight against the Presbyterian Blue Hose, pagans against Calvinists. Whatever!This is the only evening game of the year. Now, I did not purchase season tickets this year because we have launched CHURCH @ NORTHWOOD, our Saturday evening version of worship. But, this week I have very good friends coming into town and we're going to head down to Johnson Hagood Stadium after CHURCH to catch as much of the game as possible and to be with Charlie and Gerrie. 

The question is: do I preach in my Bulldog pants, a facsimile of which is posted stage left? Now, I've prayed about this and just cannot find peace in my heart. Wearing one of the most expensive articles of clothing I own to stand before God and our Saturday group to speak of my unwavering allegiance to the Lord God as the sole object of my devotion and adoration just seems, well. a little off. So, get a life. Sports can mimic a religious experience of sorts and some people are more devoted to their team than they are to God. Honestly, even though I do own just about every item sold in The Citadel Gift Shop, I don't usually include myself among the fanatics. Preaching in my bulldog pants might nudge me up to the edge, however. Maybe over the line in some quarters.

Now, bulldogs are not mentioned in the Bible, neither is Spike, our mascot. So, I cannot proof text the pants decision. However, the citadel is a word used very often in the Bible---a full twenty times. This must express some favor with God, that our alma mater name is at least listed among the many nouns in Scripture, even though the fortresses referenced in Scripture were not in South Carolina and each one pre-dated The Citadel by a few thousand years. And, well, I have to admit that the name "citadel" appearing in the Word doesn't speak to my Bulldog pants at all.

So, do the Bible search on "pants". Evidently trousers weren't in the Old and New Testament periods because "pants" doesn't yield anything either, except for one reference that speaks about longing---"as the deer pants for streams of water..." (Psalm 42:1).  OK, the young men wore trousers into the fiery furnace (Daniel 3:21), so maybe I do need to actually wear some pants to church. Still, are bulldog pants suitable for bringing the message.

Here's another angle. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28). Stretch that thought out and maybe it really doesn't matter about the pants at all. Any kind will do, even bulldog pants.

So,at least there's closure on the pants thing for worship this afternoon. Now, what do you think about the bulldog face painting?

Maybe not.  

The missional heart: change

The ministry of Jesus and the Twelve ramped to another level in the aftermath of what happened in Matthew 16: 13-20. It was a pivotal moment in their purposeful movement toward Jerusalem. Everything changed as a result of this inter-change between Jesus and Simon. Jesus showed them the heart of missional enterprise. Nothing was the same afterward. You see, when Christ's church fully comprehends the mission, every dimension of it changes. The missional heart moves the mission forward.

Matthew notes this shift graphically. The textual people annotate the Scripture with their chapter and paragraph divisions and separate Matthew 16:21 from the passage that precedes it. Of course, this  signals the closure of one episode and the beginning of another. However, in this instance the texts are very clearly connected. What happens in verse 21 is a result of what had occurred previously. "From that time on..." (Matthew 16:21) announces a fundamental change in how they were accomplishing their Kingdom assignment. Prior to Simon's acknowledgment of Christ, and the Lord's establishment of the mission, the essential mission had been cloaked and hidden under what many biblical commentators call "the Messianic Secret". After the words of Matthew 16:13-20, the ultimate aim of Christ's mission was brought out for all to see. Henceforth, everything changed.

Missional congregations and leaders know that the organizational integrity of the church is not defined by flow charts, hierarchies, legal documents, staffing templates, or procedural savvy. Measuring the effectiveness of the church is simply ascertaining whether or not the mission is actually being pursued and how flexible the organization is to missional influences. From the time of Peter's confession of Christ through the ascension of Jesus, the mission of the Apostles and followers of Jesus shifted to a more specific announcement of what was coming, an unveiling of what was going to happen. The transfer of authority, and a very frank appraisal of what they could expect moved them to some organizational adjustments to accommodate the mission after his ascension. In the Book of Acts, the church remained solidly committed to the Gospel message while they adjusted to changing dynamics of their Kingdom assignment.

Missional congregations and leaders discern the subtle shifts and organizational changes necessitated by the vacillating realities of the times. When they fully comprehend the mission, they know how to adjust their organization to make accomplishment of that mission the ruling factor. Far too many leaders and congregations today rigidly cling to the wrong things as they seek to preserve their system rather than pursue their mission. This is a fatal error. Structure and forms must remain fluid in a world like this. The mission is not to mimic another, more successful system, or maintain the one that has been in use for many years. It is to adjust the system and form to the mission.

Missional is a buzz word of the times. Many of us seek this designation as a prize, the reward of good vision and slick management. To be missional has become a de facto goal. Bad. Jesus' mission to change the world through the announcement of the Kingdom of God is the mission. When we realize this, it changes everything.

The missional heart: blessing

Jesus' words to Simon Peter on the occasion of his momentous confession of Christ begins with a promise of blessing. "Blessed are you, Simon bar Jonah..." (Matthew 16:17). If this passage really is the genesis of missional enterprise, as I contend, then leaders and churches with a missional heart can expect blessings from Christ.

Regrettably, some commentator or biblical interpreter has reduced the exalted term makarios to mean happy. So, the beatitudes of Jesus are now the be-happy-tudes,Christ's guide to a happy life. OK, I'm no scholar and am not qualified to parse the verbs and translate the words accurately. I know a little Greek and he runs a burger joint up in Greenville. Still, my heart tells me that makarios is more than happy.

You see happy is circumstantial, an emotion defined by what is happening around you. Overdrawn at the bank equals unhappy. Surplus in the account this month = happy. Happy fluctuates with the times, up and down, alternatively happy and unhappy, depending on what pulls your chain. Here today, gone tomorrow, that is happy.

Makarios is a spiritual condition that is constant and consistent. You can be blessed and be unhappy. My faith surrounds me with joy and peace, eternal virtues that attend my personal relationship with Jesus. When I was taking chemo-therapy I was often unhappy. But, joy and peace and blessedness punctuated every single day. So, for me, blessed is more than happy.

But, that's not the point here. Jesus promised blessedness to Simon Peter on the basis of his recognition of the Christ, the starting point from which a missional heart grows. This blessedness is certainly not a heavenly ATM, and is not the promise of financial gain, numerical growth, or success in ministry. But, the recognition of Christ is where the missional ideal begins. Blessings accrue to those leaders and churches with a missional heart.

In Missional Renaissance: Changing the Scorecard for the Church (San Francisco: Jossey Bass, 2009), Reggie McNeal writes, "Churches that thrive will become more externally focused in their ministry agenda and more intentional in developing their people." This is, of course, defining the missional congregation. Thriving is the blessing part, the expectation that attends the new scorecard. You see, Jesus pronounced a blessing over Simon Peter, and then launched the mission.

When Jesus and his mission is at the front, we can expect blessings! Pretty simple---

The missional heart: witness

Missional leaders and churches understand the significance of their witness. They also understand that the missional heart is not just about connections. Engaging a community or the world is not the final objective of Kingdom people. No, the mission pursuits of people tuned to the Kingdom have as their outcome the communication of the Good News, a witness to the life-changing glory of Christ. It is central to missional enterprise.

Jesus expressed this thought in his comments to Peter and the apostles following Simon's momentous confession of Christ. This entire pericope is a celebration of mission, Matthew 16: 13-20. When I  wrestle with our missional calling, this passage provides the half-nelson that keeps me stayed in the missional process. From this passage we can understand what actually forms the missional heart. In the interchange Jesus said, "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven..." (Matthew 28:19).

OK, this statement has been addressed from every theological longitude and latitude. Some see an argument of the authority of the church, perhaps the papacy. Others see the rule of God over the powers vying for the heart of man, good and evil, God and the adversary. Others interpret church discipline, the locking and the unlocking, binding and loosing the doors of the church.

For me, the keys of the kingdom is Jesus entrusting to the apostles and the church the entrance to the kingdom through the witness, proclamation, and mission heart of the church. He has given us the message that unlocks eternity for people who believe.

This is crucial today. Many congregations resemble the good works and valid contributions of local community and civic organizations. What separates us from the Rotarians and Kiwanians, the Junior Chamber, and the garden club is the gospel. Shoot, the world is full of benevolent groups who champion great causes, alleviate pain and suffering around the world, feed the hungry, and construct low-income housing. Thankfully, non-profits exist to provide charitable assistance for people experiencing hardship and difficulty in life. Many major corporations underwrite these initiatives. Their work is commendable.

Yes, for many generations local congregations provided these services and ministries---hospitals, schools, food kitchens, crisis centers, clinics, orphanages, to mention a few. Today, great service organizations feed the hungry, house the poor, dig wells, purify water, give agricultural advice, print reading and teaching materials, care for children. As these needs telescope into our local communities, many congregations rise to the occasion of this need, missional hearts reaching out. Sometimes, however, the primary objective is overlooked. Missional become mission-less.

There is a delicate balance here. Missional people serve without thought of the outcome. There is no payback expected, no guaranteed return on investment. At the same time, there is the keys of the kingdom thing, the reality that Jesus entrusted to us the message of eternity. Our essential mission cannot get lost in the dust-cloud of our busy-ness.

We must not forget the mission.

The missional heart: God's timing

There is an incredible sense of timing in the Gospels. The "Messianic Secret" that figures so significantly in the telling of Christ's story, especially in Mark, provides plenty of proof texts that Jesus was aware of his "hour", of an appointed time coming in Jerusalem, and that he would not operate or minister outside of God's time-table.

This is, of course, a challenge for people who are always in a hurry. Even with our best intentions mission is often lost in the dust-cloud generated by our busy-ness, the urgent pursuit of our Kingdom purpose. A certain impatience superintends life. Waiting is not our forte. Neither is stillness or quiet, idle hands and minds being the fertile ground of potentially bad things. So, impatience hangs over life like a cloud, injecting rush into just about everything we do. This sense of urgency is very clear in the Gospel of Mark, where the words "immediately" and "straightway" and "at once" punctuate the text with the distinct impression that someone was in a hurry. Maybe it's some consolation that even a Godly young man like Mark was ready for action all the time. You get the impression that time matters.

And, it does. Surely there is a biblical case for instant obedience, saying "yes" to Jesus the very moment he speaks to us. To delay in doing what our Lord commands is a grievous sin. So this sense of spiritual urgency is real and should define our pursuit of Kingdom imperatives. Yet, there is also another element to the dynamic tension that stretches us. To get ahead of our Lord is trouble too, another level of rebellion that places us out of position to follow him or do what he tells us. There is no better illustration of this than the incident immediately after Simon's confession of Christ.  You know the situation. Matthew's account indicates a ramping-up of Christ's mission after Peter's famous words in Matthew 16. Jesus then began to speak to the disciples clearly about what was coming.

Get this! Peter rebuked the Lord, admonishing him that these predicted things would never happen. Then, Jesus lowered the boom on Simon. "Get behind me, Satan! You ar a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of man" (Matthew 16:23). Peter had moved ahead of the Lord and was not in a position to follow him. He was attempting to interrupt the timetable.

That is why Jesus had warned them earlier to not tell anyone that he was the Christ ( Matthew 16:20). Clearly, there was this timing thing. The mission could not get ahead of the Lord whose mission it was. Oops! He wanted them to stay on point, remain focused on what was clearly happening. He wanted them to understand and be clearly committed to God's timing.

I remember the urgency of our Celebrate Recovery launch team. We were an eager, expectant, and willing bunch. We attended a CR regional seminar in Myrtle Beach and heard the advisers from all over America cautioning us to pray and prepare before trying to start Celebrate Recovery. Of course, we were all a little OCD about moving this thing forward. We contacted people, set dates, recruited, planned, and went through all the motions of cranking this thing up. Then, someone said we were getting ahead of God. We ended up praying for three years before the actual launch. I cannot tell you what a blessing this ministry is! We learned that you cannot get ahead of God.

The same can be said of our new Saturday evening worship. A bunch of achievers and activators wanted this moving like ASAP, you know, yesterday. But, we prayed about it for over five years before it actually happened. Someone cautioned us not to get ahead of God.

Missional leaders and congregations understand the principle of the Kingdom clock, and what it means to be surrendered to God's timing.

The missional heart: revelation

Mission today is often lost in the bling of cleverness! For the past decade the missional renaissance has compelled leaders and congregations to get serious about mission. So, the head honchos of church organization and administration have aimed us toward the processes of mission clarification. It is the stuff of mission statements, core values, goals and objectives, and all of the other paraphernalia of a well-organized church. Being on mission has become a board room activity, beginning in the chalk talk of brain-storming sessions, ending in the cleverness of well-crafted words and catchy phrasing. The wordsmiths have sculpted mission and vision statements to inform and inspire, respectively. I mean, without a vision, the people perish, right? You just can't be a church today without a tag line, logo, mission statement that fits on a t-shirt or coffee mug, and a vision statement that thrills the soul and mobilizes us at the front lines of this modern warfare.

Trouble is, it isn't about vision at all. Shoot, search committees ask candidates what their vision is for their church. Get a life!!! I usually advise the prospective staffers to move on after that question. The people who ask such questions don't get it. You see, the church isn't about our vision. What matters is revelation. God's vision is the deal, what God desires for His church. Missional people get this.

Peter confessed Jesus as "...the Christ, the Son of the Living God" (Matthew 16:16). It was spot on. Jesus then said something very significant in this regard. He said, "Blessed are you Simon bar Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven...on this rock I will build my church" (Matthew 16: 17-18). The church Jesus is building is constructed on the solid truth of revelation, and not some cleverly contrived vision statement.

Vision mania creates a dust-cloud of busy-ness that far too often obscures mission. Pop religion chases such things, pursues them with vengeance, believing that Christ's church cannot progress without a compelling vision, a future that is articulated with clarity, a precise photo op of what is coming. Surely, we do need clear direction. Just as surely, God gives it! So, the compelling vision isn't contrived by slick marketing types with savvy think-tank tactics. It is revealed by God. Missional congregations and leaders are tuned to revelation. Their unity isn't forced or the agreement of yes men giving verbal acquiescence to some wild scheme the pastor and staff devise. It is a compelling revelation from God that moves the missional team.

This is another shift. The whole "Purpose Driven" thing placed vision and mission on the screen, no longer aggravating pop-ups to remind us, but now, but clearly morphed truths that moved us into a missional framework. As is most changes there is a tendency for wide pendulum swings and the influence of the Saddleback success drove many congregations to the vision quest. Prospective church members ask about vision. It is a prominent feature of web sites, blogs, printed data, newsletters, and all the other church glitz. All well and good. Getting vision on the radar screen.

But, it isn't our dreams for the church. It is what God wants of us. So, it is revelation. Missional people pray for it, pursue it, get it, live it. It's the revelation thing. And, we better make this shift now!