Transparently Yours

August 10, 2012 by 2 Comments

I do what I can to walk by faith in Christ and seek his wisdom, yet I can not stand idly by while brethren (and sisters) behave with such immaturity and lack of understanding for others who are not just like them. So, when I write an article like this, know that this comes from a follower of Christ. I preface this article like that, because I can be harsh at times and I don’t want it to be said that I’m anti-Jesus. I just don’t appreciate the hypocrisy, lies, and manipulation taking place in the Christian community. Jesus was harsh at times too, like in Matthew 23 when he ‘ripped the lips off’ the self righteous pharisees.

Proverbs 4:7 “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.” KJV

For the last year I have worked very diligently to understand the diversity of pagans in our world. Through patience and humility I have allowed myself to walk by faith in entering their world so I can learn to understand. I have come to respect them as fellow human beings in this global community called humanity. I have found so many that respect my path and they have never tried to convert me nor do they bash Jesus to me. In fact, it was in a Druid community that my faith in Christ was deepened.

2 Corinthians 5:7 “for we walk by faith, not by sight.” ESV

I have found that many of them do respect the Jesus they read about in the bible, they just don’t respect the abusive version that some denominations of Christianity are forcing on society.

I found an article written by a pagan that I found rather interesting and posted it on my Facebook wall. I wanted to encourage a conversation of understanding so my Christian friends can learn to understand paganism with a more educated basis than the popular paranoia perspective so many of them espouse to.

It’s sad to see those who immediately throw stones without taking the time to listen. How do these people even claim to be missionary minded if they approach people with such exclusion?

I believe myself to be an organic minister and I love people where they are. It is not my intent to manipulate people into choosing Jesus as a deity, savior, or otherwise. In my faith, I believe that if Jesus wanted to give people a revelation about him, he could do that without manipulation and terrorizing tactics. Furthermore, I’m also not interested in conning people with false kindness in hopes that they’ll recite some man made prayer and pledge allegiance to the Christian flag.

Many times over the years I have had intense experiences with the Lord that convinced me to follow his teachings and accept the love he has been giving to me. It grieves me greatly to see religious leaders portray God as an abusive tyrant who threaten people into choosing Jesus. It does matter to me what people think of Jesus and how the Holy Spirit works, because I have a beautiful connection with him and I do not want to have broken relationships with people who think I’m lumped in with such immaturity.

In my view of Christ, people matter to him. And it’s through this perspective that I find myself viewing people as worthy of love. This authentic love flows naturally, but I’ll be honest and say that there are times when it’s more difficult to let that love flow. It’s when abusive people intrude and disrupt in which case I struggle with showering love on them. I fall miserably short and grow impatient when I see people being abused. Or perhaps this is just how the love of Christ manifests in defense of victims.

Luke 23:24 “Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they’re doing.” Meanwhile, the soldiers divided his clothes among themselves by throwing dice.” GWT

image credit David Hayward

I believe God loves us all equally. The story of the prodigal son is really more about the father and how his relationships with his sons can teach us a powerful lesson. Both sons had an inheritance. One wanted to receive his right away then depart to go live life as he so desired. The other stayed home and close to his father’s side. Through this story we see the father freely give the first son all that he requested and allowed him to go free, leave the family, their community, and did not condemn him for doing so. Once the son had lost all he had, he decided to come back and serve his father as a slave. The other son was not happy with how their father welcomed him home, prepared the fatted calf, and threw his arms around his son. This son who stayed home is often portrayed as the faithful son who obeyed his father and didn’t ask for anything. Yet, many times Christians fail to see the real problem with the story.

The story is not about the first son living the party life (although we do learn a lesson from that), but rather we see the obedient son plagued with a toxicity we call self righteousness. He thought he was better than his brother and felt that he deserved the fatted calf more than his brother. Even with this view, there is a bigger picture here. The bigger picture is the father who loved both sons equally. Both sons had the freedom to do what they wanted, yet each brother learned different lessons. One learned his father loved him and was a man of grace, while the other learned his father was not legalistic as the son assumed he was. Two sons had different views of their father.

God gives us the freedom to decide for ourselves. He freely gives Pagans, Atheists, Unitarians, Trinitarians, Catholics, Fundamentalists and Pentecostals alike, the choice to make on their own. If we force someone to recite a prayer without having the opportunity to make an educated decision, then we aren’t really giving them freedom to choose. When Christians make choosing Jesus into a threat, then what kind of choice is that?

If Jesus wants someone to choose him, he can contact them on his own. The Spirit knows how to convince someone of love. At the same time I do believe we have a responsibility to represent him with love and compassion. Even if people never choose Jesus, our responsibility is to represent him with humility, grace, and love.

Maybe some folks should refrain from calling them Christians if they aren’t going to be committed to living out the Gospel with love. Perhaps they can simply say they are learning about Christ, rather than trying to speak on his behalf and putting both feet into their mouths.

My heart for my fellow pagan loved ones (and anyone else for that matter) is not a mission to convert them, but rather a desire to understand them and to love them. We are all a part of the global family of humanity. Let’s follow in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s inspiration by loving our fellow man equally. Even some of the most self centered, arrogant, and self righteous Christians are equally loved by God, it’s just more difficult for us to love them. Nonetheless, we’re all created in the image of God.

Genesis 1:26 “Let us make man in our image” ~God

Some people are easier to love than others. While it has taken a journey of faith for me to learn to love others, it’s taking me a journey of strength and patience to love bullies.

Transparently yours.

Sisterlisa

Filed Under: Kingdom Living, Organic Faith Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Traditional Marriage, Boycotting, and a Movie Massacre

July 23, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Last week the media and social networks were all a buzz about the controversy behind Chik-fil-A’s statement about the ongoing battle on marriage equality vs. traditional families. I have seen many graphics that looked more like propaganda than anything else. The traditional famly-ists against the non traditional famly-ists continues to wage war against one another and they don’t seem to really bring about peace to the nation as a whole. We are a diverse nation of people, whose forefathers came from all over the world. They were of several different beliefs, cultures, and races. Our ancestors came here in hopes to find freedom to live peaceably and to pursue our own individual beliefs. Why can’t the country embrace their own beliefs and yet give others the freedom to pursue their own? We’ve already had a Civil War and I really don’t want to see it happen again.

Those who have accepted the public school avenue for education and those who choose alternatives all claim to pursue the best education possible for their children. If all of these groups truly are working hard to increase their education then why can’t they figure out a better way to have public discourse without using the same belittling smoke screen attacks the politicians use? Why can’t we find a way to communicate effectively without making it all about choosing one way over another?

People have the freedom to have a traditional family. There is nothing in the law of this nation that prohibits them. The traditional family does not know what it’s like to hide the fact that they have one mom and one dad. They don’t have any reason to fear their children will get beat up in school just because their mom and dad got married. Traditional families have nothing to fear if one spouse is hospitalized, because they have full access to be with their spouse in ICU. Traditional families have nothing to fear if one dies before the other, because they have the right to claim their social security. All of this security for them, yet they worry about the traditional family being in danger? No one is going to force a traditional family to give up their marriage rights, break them up, or halt them from having a legal wedding.

If the traditionalists are going to worry about the sanctity of marriage then they need to focus on their own marriages and not worry about everyone else’s. Traditional marriage will never die, because without a sperm and an egg people can’t have babies.

It seems to be an oxymoron for a traditionalist Christian to worry about anything, because Christ tells them to have faith. They are to walk by faith and pursue their own walk with God, while being willing to give up all their ‘rights’ for the cause of Christ. Yet they continue to create battle after battle where there is no threat. Maybe Chik-fil-A didn’t realize this as they fanned the flames when they issued this hypocritical statement,

“The Chick-fil-A culture and service tradition in our restaurants is to treat every person with honor, dignity and respect –- regardless of their belief, race, creed, sexual orientation or gender. We will continue this tradition in the over 1,600 Restaurants run by independent Owner/Operators. Going forward, our intent is to leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena.

Chick-fil-A is a family-owned and family-led company serving the communities in which it operates. From the day Truett Cathy started the company, he began applying biblically-based principles to managing his business. For example, we believe that closing on Sundays, operating debt-free and devoting a percentage of our profits back to our communities are what make us a stronger company and Chick-fil-A family.

Our mission is simple: to serve great food, provide genuine hospitality and have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A.”

I don’t have a problem with a company saying they support traditional families, but when they claim they don’t discriminate then financially back laws and other agencies who do, then that is where I believe people become weary of the hypocrisy and understandably so.

A traditional family is where the parents are one mom and one dad who entered into holy matrimony and are raising children together. What about the widowed grandmothers who are raising their grandchildren, because the parents are both in jail? How about the single grandfathers who are caring for nieces and nephews whose parents never married and are homeless due to drug addiction? What about single women who have compassionate hearts and are foster parents to children who were abandoned? None of these families are traditional families. Who supports them? Why can’t we just support families in general? Shouldn’t supporting the family be for the purpose of offering children a future? Are children from non traditional families not relative to the future, because their parental unit does not consist of one man and one woman?

I saw a graphic that made me wince a bit. It was of the Chik-fil-A cows painting a billboard that read,

“Be mor tolrant, boycot Chik-fil-A”

What an oxymoron! The whole reason people are upset is because Chik-fil-A and other agencies are boycotting non traditional families while people are claiming they are intolerant for doing so. Isn’t boycotting a form of intolerance? So I re-created the graphic to this;

I understand the anger when there is discrimination. I understand wanting to support businesses who do support equal rights. What I don’t understand is how one group can discriminate against others who are discriminating too, then ask for tolerance for themselves.

I support equal rights. Two consenting adults should have the same equal rights as anyone else. They should be free to make a commitment to one another and have their own families without discrimination. Their children should be able to go to school and church without being bullied for being a part of a non traditional family. These children should not be discriminted against, because their parents choose a different lifestyle than the status quo.

When Jesus walked throughout the land, he never commanded the Christians to force the government to live by the Torah. His charge to his followers was simple, “Love others as you love yourself”. He even went further by saying, “Love your enemies”. There was also this scenario where a rich man asked how he could be a disciple. Jesus told him to sell all he had and give it to the poor. The man chose not to do that and Jesus let the man be free to make his choice. He didn’t condemn the man or withhold his money from him. He didn’t demand the government to take away the man’s right to be rich. Jesus didn’t picket the man’s business nor build billboards to incite rage and gather an army to boycott his business either. He let it go!

Then, in the midst of this last week’s drama about whether or not we should eat fried chicken advertised by uneducated cows or shop at JCPenney, innocent lives were taken just after midnight as a shooter entered a movie theater in Colorado. The social network newsfeeds halted the marriage equality debate as everyone stood in agreement that this was a senseless act of violence. The people, both traditional and non traditional, cry out for justice!

The president issued a statement and this part grabbed my full attention,

“We are committed to bringing whoever was responsible to justice, ensuring the safety of our people, and caring for those who have been wounded. As we do when confronted by moments of darkness and challenge, we must now come together as one American family.”~President Obama

This is the absolute truth of the matter, we are One American Family. We are an American family that is both white and black, red and yellow, male and female, young and old, Italian and German, English and African, Christian and Muslim, Pagan and Jew. This One American Family has it’s fair share of dysfunction, but it is still one family! We rejoice together on the Fourth of July and weep together every September 11th.

This is a country where we are both of our ancestor’s heritage and one new heritage under the stars and stripes. This is a family that is both traditional and non traditional and as we face uncertain days of senseless acts of violence, we are still one family. Be free to build community with those who are supportive of your individuality, tradition, or sacred beliefs. What is sacred to one may not be sacred to another and that’s ok. So long as we can be supportive and protective of one another’s right to pursue happiness and freedom to worship as each person sees fit.

Sisterlisa

Filed Under: Church Culture, Kingdom Living Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

We’re All in this Together

July 18, 2012 by Leave a Comment

We have seen an incredible shift in Christianity these last few years with some folks being more inclusive and others being more exclusive. There have been a lot of divisions, hurt feelings, and economic suffering as folks have changed churches or left them altogether. Many are trying to find blame in either the struggling economy and/or in the leaders and laity of their congregations. Others are trying to revive spiritual communities by offering innovative ways of nurturing communication through conferences and festivals of all kinds. Instead of casting blame, can we hoist up the white flag? Whether we’re Episcopalian, Catholic, Liberal, Pentecostal, Conservative, Evangelicals, Fundamentalists, or All-Inclusionists, we are all in this together.

We don’t really have to worry about whether traditions will survive, we as the Body WILL survive because Christ is our eternal groom. He has demonstrated his unconditional love for us all by dying and most importantly, resurrecting us with Him. He has conquered the grave and given us an abiding love and life that is immeasurable. Even if you ended up being the only human interested in your tradition, you are never alone with Christ who dwells within you. It is enjoyable to have others partake in traditions with us and yet our own insecurities cause us to react in fear and anger when someone chooses to depart from one tradition and go to another.

potted succulent by sisterlisa, on Pix-O-Sphere

Along with that comes the economic suffering as tithes and offerings leave the organizations. This poses an incredibly difficult dilemma for those remaining in the tradition, because they can’t keep up with the cost of the church’s expenses. Have we become dependent on the organization and forgotten our first love? Has the building become an idol that swayed us into an adulterous relationship with brick and mortar? Are we trying to squeeze money from folks who don’t have any left to give? We can try to find blame and root out dysfunction, but the bottom line is that we lost sight of our true identity in Christ. Smash that idol at the feet of Christ.

We have no need to feel insecure, yet we do. We get sidetracked by the material things of this world and Christ remains true to us as he embraces us in his everlasting love. Even while we may not notice him, he is still embracing us. Finding community with others can be an enriching experience. If we’ll just let go our insecurity and really come back to walking by faith then we can develop new relational communities where we can grow spiritually. Without Christ as the head, the body will stumble.

This next month my husband and I will be attending a Faith Leaders Institute where we will be coming together with faith leaders from a variety of religious backgrounds to discuss the economic impact our communities have suffered and combine our intellect, talent, and spiritual insights to help support one another in making changes in our communities. We need to resist fear and confidently walk into a new and innovative way to develop and nurture communities to grow and bond again.

One area that I have seen which is suffering, is outside the walls of organized Christianity. Sadly, scores of people have been wounded by insecure and controlling Christians. People of faith who are suffering from inflicted pain by false accusations, condemnation, and even physical assault are feeling buried. Their souls are gasping for fresh air and living water, while not able to see that their abusers are suffering too. We’re all suffering in one aspect or another. We’re all in this together.

refreshing by sisterlisa, on Pix-O-Sphere

We have people inside the Christian community who are lashing out at those who left and those who left are lashing out at those who stayed. The communities have become a battle ground instead of safe havens for recovery. It behooves us to have a time out and cool down. Every wounded soldier needs to leave the battle field to recover. It would be even better if we could stop the war.

Somewhere along the way we forgot that our war was in the spiritual realm and wolves brought chaos into the communities making it a literal war that could never be won in the flesh. The real war is not about the money needed to fund a building. All the beauty we create for our communities through gorgeous carpet, window treatments, and sound systems are all going to pass away. As comfortable as it is to sit in an air conditioned building during the summer in Phoenix or in a heated building during the winter in Wisconsin, it’s all going to be gone one day. Instead of fighting with each other over the buildings, why not brainstorm ideas about downsizing or renting out your building to the people in the community. There’s a lot of ways to be financially creative so your community can survive. Many families have needed to cut back so they can survive economically, there’s no reason why a religious organization can’t cinch the belt a bit to.

shore by sisterlisa, on Pix-O-Sphere

There’s a lot of work to do in serving the community, from feeding the poor, housing the homeless, to counseling wounded people for the spiritual abuse they have suffered. I think we’re wasting too much time pointing out the speck in each other’s eyes when we have our own beams to deal with.

Lets get back to the simplicity of the Gospel and just love one another where we’re at. The Christ within who loved us while we were yet sinners, empowers us to do so likewise. Love one another as He has loved us. We have been commissioned with building up the faith of the people through encouragement and reminders of their identity in the perfection of true love, which is this indwelling Christ. If people choose to leave, then give them the freedom to depart. It can be the most loving thing you can do for them. We were never given the promise that certain people will always be in our lives.

Life Coach Carolee Dalton says this,

“Some people come into our lives with a need- They need us to believe in them! They may be lacking a healthy and accurate view of who they truly are; and we gift them with a new perspective. We help them see themselves the way God sees them-Powerful and Perfect! When we understand our purpose, it will keep us from becoming frustrated; wondering why we aren’t getting much out of the relationship. ”

People are a gift to us. We either get to receive their love as a gift to us or we can give a gift of love to them. In a rare instance we will get to experience ‘give and receive’ in the same relationships. At any time people need to depart for any reason at all, let them be free. It may be that they are fulfilled and secure in your love for them and are ready to go out into another community to share that same love with others.

Sometimes downsizing a community in a variety of ways will help us refocus on the indwelling Christ. Don’t fight against it, instead find purpose in it. Above all, love others. Otherwise we’re just noise pollution. If a church wants to include divorced people, homosexuals, drug addicts, or obese people into their communities, it’s really not your business to tell them otherwise. We’re are all brethren and equally under grace. Each faith community will have different ways to evangelize in their neighborhoods. Even Paul, the one who was sent, spoke to pagans in a way that many Christians totally reject. This was Paul’s freedom and the message God gave him to preach was unique to him and the people he was reaching. If you’re a church that has included divorced people, homosexuals, drug addicts, or obese people into their communities then good for you, but that doesn’t make you better than those who haven’t.

coast by sisterlisa, on Pix-O-Sphere

Grace is not a respecter of persons. Grace isn’t bigoted. Grace doesn’t give preference to a well dressed religious man while forcing the poor to sit in the back pew. Grace isn’t set aside only for the Reformers while ignoring the Universalists. Grace is for everyone.

Knowing your identity is in the One who equally loves us all is a place of rest where we can halt our wars with one another and allow the Spirit of God to do the healing work in our hearts.

Please pray for us and send us your positive energy so we can be of value at the Faith Leaders Institute beginning at the end of July. May we come together with the common bond of love so we can bridge the gap we see in the miscommunication Christianity has been wrestling with.

Sisterlisa

Filed Under: Grace Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Being a Minister of Organic Faith

July 11, 2012 by 4 Comments

I recently changed a portion of my bio here on my blog and on my Facebook page to read, “Minister of Organic Faith”. Many may wonder exactly what that is so I’ll attempt to reveal my heart on the matter so you can understand. I am not a part of a particular denomination or religious organization. I do not believe a person has to be a part of one in order to love folks and nurture a positive and uplifting community. I think there is a time and place for belonging to such an organization, if that’s what you choose to do. I spent many years (half of my life) in such places and it is time for me to not be. I know from the depths of my heart that I am not to entangle myself with something that could become religious silly string. I am confident that one of the blessings Christ has given me is my freedom and I plan to fully enjoy that freedom from a place of love.

Paul, the one who was sent to the Gentiles, said he had no need for letters of recommendation. The credentials he had was first from the Lord and secondly, confirmed in his heart and the people whose lives he impacted. Paul certainly had spent many years as a good scribe, preparing himself for the Old Covenant ministry, yet it was the Spirit of the Lord who called him out into over a decade of private study and personal revelation before he hit the streets with the Gospel of grace. A minister is one who attends to the needs of others. No one is obligated to spend a fortune on a college degree in order to minister to (meet the needs of) people. I look at this word ‘minister’ as a verb before I observe it as a noun. It’s descriptive of what a person does. I attend to the needs of people and thus I become a minister. Now, there are people who go through the motions of meeting needs in order that they receive a title of ‘minister’, but their heart isn’t really in it. I don’t view people like that as true ministers. Not that I want to judge what’s in their heart, but rather what I am saying is that if any of us are simply doing the action in order to acquire some worldly title then we have missed the whole point of being a minister.

I have lived my life from the outpouring depth of my heart and in doing so others have told me that I minister to them. Whereas some folks may attend a seminary to get a degree called ‘Masters in Ministry’, then they went out to minister. I have received the confirmation of my gift of ministering from the very lives of the people that I touched with love and grace. For me, I put far more weight in the confirmation of those I have loved, than in a piece of paper that says I past some tests in a concrete building.

So here we get to the part of what kind of minister I am. I use the term ‘Organic Faith’, because it is something that flows from the heart with each step we make in this life’s journey. This organic approach can not be learned in a classroom setting and while I could speak at an event about how I minister, the teaching time in a room is nothing compared to what happens in my real life mission field.

A common conversation in my life resembles something like this:

Me: “Yes, I am a minister. I minister to people in my community.”
“How many people are members of your church?”
Me: ”The people are the church and it’s an unlimited number, world wide.”
“Where is your church?”
Me: ”Did you not hear me the first time? The people ARE the church.”
“Do you have a board of directors?”
Me: ”No need for a board, people stand up for themselves, I don’t lord over them.”
“Oh so you don’t really have an organization”
Me: ”I didn’t say I had an organization, I said I minister to people.”
“So you just walk around town and talk to people?”
Me: ”ummm yes, isn’t that what Jesus did?

I read throughout the New Testament that Jesus walked all over town, stopping at parks, rivers, and living rooms to lounge with people and love them. He had simple yet profound discussions with them and greatly influenced and impacted their lives. His simple words of grace inspired millions to live richer lives, while he sometimes shared pointed thoughts that challenged the self righteous folks to re-examine their motives. He didn’t go out of his way to seek out those arrogant citizens, but when they came near he had some astonishing things to say. The New Testament reveals that Jesus spent more time with people who wanted to be loved and less time with people who thought they had all their jots and tittles in perfect order. He even said he didn’t come for them, but for the others who had been cast away by the pastors of their communities.

So how does one minister organically? Well, I can tell you what I do and what I see of the writings of Christ, but ultimately you have to know for yourself and it must come from within where the Lord dwells. I visit folks in their homes and invite them to mine. I invite them to the beach, to go whale watching, to have breakfast at a diner with friends and enjoy live music together.

coast by sisterlisa, on Pix-O-Sphere

We sit around a bonfire to chat about life and share experiences, both good and bad, as we roast marshmallows and help children with the sticky mess they get on their fingers. We laugh and we cry together. We are building community. I babysit for single moms who work long hours into the night and encourage them when they come get their children with these comforting and affirming words,

“You’re a good mom, your children must be so proud of you”.

To the surgical nurse who labors all night to save a drunk driver from dying I say,

“I bet your kids see you as a hero, I do.”

Yet these affirming words were never told to her by the Christian she works with. All she ever hears from her is condemning remarks about her tattoos and disgusted grunts when she shows compassion for a family whose gay son died on the emergency room table.

You see, as much as I would be honored to speak at a large event (and I would if asked to), I find so much more value in touching real lives right where they are as their paths cross mine.

Then there are times when the self righteous come near. At a table discussion among men and women, a man says that he doesn’t think women should be pastors (complete with all his jots and tittles to prove why). Yet he sits among women who are pastors to people who have confirmed them as ministers. It is then that I choose my words wisely as I unfold my thoughts about the many female leaders throughout the Bible, including prophetesses, teachers, and an apostle. My sister-in-Christ shares her story of God’s calling on her life when the community leaders (all men) legally approved for her to preach the gospel in her native country. Had this sweet elderly (female) soul not been here I most likely would have had some more jarring and colorful words for this brother. In some crowds you can be blunt, like when Rachel Held Evans uses the word vagina, and in other crowds more finesse is required and this was one of those times.

A minister is not disqualified because she has a vagina and is not approved because he has a penis. It’s what goes on in the soul of a person that matters and how the sparks of abundant life positively affects and frees the souls of those who are in bondage, in pain, and parched for living water .

So while my formal education is limited, my field experience is rich and full of spiritual community and relationships that are pure as gold. I am a minister who lives in a female body, yet has a genderless soul. God is a genderless Spirit and those who wish to worship must do so in spirit. Calling God a literal ‘he’ is a human tradition and can equally be referred to in the feminine form without violating the Truth of who God is, the Spirit of Love. Yet we live in this physical realm of both male and female, both of which are created in the image of God. We are equally loved and equally empowered to touch lives.

So I shall continue to live my life as a minister and will even call myself a Minister of Organic Faith and no one can disqualify me based on my physical gender, because it is the Lord who qualified me in the genderless Spirit. Some men (and some women) may not like that, but it’s not up to them who I reach out to and love. It is now that I’ll log off this blog for the day and go out into my community and lavish them with affirming love and remind them of how valuable they are. It’s just what I do in my path of organic faith. If you need a jot and a tittle to prove to you that a female can be a minister, then following organic faith may not be best suited for you.

 Sisterlisa

Filed Under: Organic Faith Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

When Christians Fail in Discipleship

March 6, 2012 by 2 Comments

I hear it over and over again, “I was burned by Christians”… I was too. I always hope it was because it was baby Christians who lacked in spiritual maturity, but then it’s a face palm when people say they were burned by 30 year deacons or pastors. This isn’t going to be an easy article to read. I’m not pulling any punches in this one and I’m taking the gloves off.

Church, we’re failing in discipleship. We fail the Christian community when we rush teenagers off to bible school to rush through 4 years of classroom education then push them into pulpits in their early twenties and rush rapid growth of filling pews. We’re failing the Christian community and the surrounding communities when we make the numbers more important than solid Christian discipleship.

Making disciples comes with great responsibility. It means we are committing ourselves to a new believer as they take this walk of faith in God’s grace. It requires nurturing them and admonishing them to grow into responsible people who value their spirituality in Christ as a high priority. It’s high time we stop rushing people into the pews in order to push for a confession of belief and quickly get them started with giving ten percent of their income to keep the building open. That’s not what being a Christian is about. It’s not about the numbers, it’s not about the money, and it’s certainly not about competing with the church next door.

It took over 2000 years to build what we call The Great Wall of China and it stills stands today. It took hard work, many people, many sacrifices, and lots of patience to erect such a strong wall. Are we approaching discipleship with the same effort?

I think this is what Jesus meant in Matthew 7: 24“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” (ESV)

If we have worried ourselves with rushing the construction of a fancy building, filling the pews with wallets so we can rub elbows with the prestigious churches and sit at fancy tables with the religious, then we are going to fall in the storm and many are testifying that this fall is already happening.

It’s time we repent of this bizarre rebuilding of Babel. Jesus isn’t concerned about rushing people to pledge allegiance to creeds and give their money to build temples. He created His temple within us. Peter gives us this beautiful illustration of the holy temple, us.

1 Peter 2: “4As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (ESV)

A true disciple of Christ is one who walks by faith. They commit themselves to growing in grace and seeking wisdom to walk circumspectly, to exercise self control, one who seeks to drink from the Living Water and bear fruit.

Galatians 5:  ”22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” (ESV)

These are not fruits that can be super glued to your life in haste. They can’t be mere labels stuck to knock offs who want to look like the real deal. It takes time to grow fruit and we must take our path in Christ seriously. We must not fancy ourselves as “arrived Christians” just because we complete a 6 week ‘discipleship’ course at a church. How dare we think a bible college graduate has the wisdom to lead a congregation fresh out of bible school without being mentored after graduation.

We need spirit filled Christians who have walked the path of faith, who have grown through adversity and still cling to a walk of faith, who extend grace and impart wisdom to our community. How can we expect to see mature Christians who hold fast to faith in Christ when all we’re doing is pumping out clones on a conveyor belt?

What do we need to do? Slow down.

We need to realize what it means to invest in one another, to walk with one another, to love one another in grace. Gone are the days of quick recruitment into a church and speedy public profession of creeds. We need to stop misrepresenting Christ by branding him into business logos and copyrighted self help programs. We need to stop identifying ourselves with denominations, popular pastors, and fancy new movements.

We need to take our time to mentor others in what it means to be a Christian before we rush them into agreeing with our interpretations and getting their signature on a church membership agreement.

Making a decision to be a disciple of Christ needs to be a very personal decision and must be accompanied with a commitment. Not a commitment to a brand of churches, but a commitment to walk in faith and to grow in grace. It takes a commitment to learn Christ within. Being a disciple of Christ is not something you ever graduate from, there is no point of arrival, and it can’t be something that gets a stamp of approval from a pastor.

Walking in discipleship is a journey in Christ. If you’ve been burned by what seemed to be pillars in your Christian community, I’m so sorry. They aren’t people who have arrived, by any means. They may have lacked in true spiritual discipleship. We do hope that a Christian would be someone who has integrity, wisdom, and compassion, but that’s not always the case.  You don’t have to seek discipleship from people who haven’t been truly discipled.

So how is a person to find others who take their spiritual walk with Christ seriously? How can you find a community of believers that are willing to be committed to discipleship?

More often than not, you won’t find a ready made church that is equipped with all the bells and whistles. Cookie cutter style discipleship doesn’t work. I’m not fond of people putting out an ad to say, “Here we are (raising hand), we have the answer and best discipleship class in town.” You won’t find a solid spiritual journey by ‘liking’ the latest Facebook church ad. It’s not found in signing up to some website with your email to invite a leader to your home to instruct you.

Finding followers of Christ are more often seen sitting with the homeless at the beach. They don’t fancy themselves with suits and ties, they humble themselves to be real and relational. They aren’t interested in harnessing wealthy people into the pews, they are found holding tearful women at the exit door of an abortion clinic. They rarely are seen performing public feats of religiosity to get media attention, and are more likely to be found driving a drunk friend home and watching him all night so he doesn’t drown in his vomit. These are people who are disciples of Christ and it’s the Spirit of the Lord who guides them to have this kind of compassion.

They grow in grace and listen to the Living Word that is written on their hearts. It’s hearts of love that no longer fear being rejected by the religious. They aren’t into quick fixes, they embrace longevity in relationships. They don’t fit into the church systems and are often ordered into silence because they preach the true Gospel of grace and that grace scares the religious.

If you’re interested in being a disciple of Christ all you do is ask Him to guide you. His Spirit will guide you into truth and you’ll know it’s true love that sets your feet upon a solid Rock. as you walk by faith, He will guide you to others who are on the same journey. They’re out there, keep your eyes and ears open and He will show them to you.

 

 

Filed Under: Organic Church Tagged With: , , ,

You’re Invited

December 27, 2011 by 2 Comments

The year 2011 was quite a journey for me as a whole, but specifically as a Christ follower. I walked away from the hell-trend in modern Christianity and sought to follow my Lord in a more organic path without the threat of eternal torture. This has brought on a lot of criticism and at the same time a lot of genuine inquiry of my spiritual journey. In order for me to continue to follow Christ, I had to cease from viewing God as an emotional and insecure manipulator. According to evangelical fundamentalism, I already believe in Jesus and in his atonement for my sin, therefore a literal fire torture hell is no longer a threat to my soul and as such I found that living a life of victory was in order. So, believing in a literal hell made no difference to my Kingdom life as a Christian. I didn’t choose to follow Christ because of such a hell in the first place. So why would it matter to me now?

Many would say because I have an obligation now to tell other people about that place of never ending torture. Pardon me while I speak (write) so boldly as I declare that there are real life dangers, scams, and hells on earth to assist people with as it is, NOW! Those people have a difficult time imagining an afterlife of torture when they’re already living a torturous life as it is. I also found that using hell as a threat to ‘choose Jesus or else’ shaped a very dysfunctional relationship with God and Jesus that was not yielding the peaceable fruit of the Spirit within. For those who believe in this fiery torment, you may be relieved that you won’t be tortured, but it doesn’t alleviate the tension you feel over your loved ones eternal destiny in unending flames.

I don’t believe that God ever intended to put the weight of your family’s sin on your shoulders when Jesus already bore that burden on our behalf. So what’s the point in evangelism then? Why preach the kingdom if there is no eternal fire chamber that people dangle over by a thread? Is that all Jesus is good for? The get out of hell card? Or is there more to Jesus and this Kingdom Life that goes largely unnoticed by much of Christendom today?

With over 35,000 denominations of Christianity today, you can bet that none of them have all the answers to everything nor does any one in particular hold “the right” interpretation on every point in the bible. We listen to the pastors and famous theologians of yesteryear to determine what to place our beliefs in. Everything we believe as Christians is done so by faith…without evidence.  Yet, we know to test everything by the Spirit and in doing so I look for the fruit.

Nevertheless, I continue to walk by faith in Christ by the experience I have come to attain in this evidence-less journey. No matter what interpretation a person chooses to follow, they do so by faith. When it all boils down and we come up against brick walls within Christianity, I rest in grace. Grace is such a paradoxical way to live and often times is widely criticized by many. What grace looks like to God is many times not agreed with by mankind. Why should sinners get a break when religious people live by such high standards? How is it that those sinners can get away with riotous living while the religious work so tirelessly to perform feats of perfection for God?

Shall we be like Baal’s priests in the Old Testament who cut themselves to get the attention of their god? Or can we boldly go before the throne of God because Jesus already showed us the way? Do we have to abstain from certain things to be good representations of our God or can we do whatever we want?

Can we love the beaten man on the road like the Samaritan did or are we to ignore the poor and refuse to get dirty in the sin of the world? What about the gays, pagans, or Christians who have been divorced? Are we to ‘put them away’ in a ‘writing of divorcement’ from fellowship due to the hardness of our hearts or can we take the high road and extend grace and love to them?

These are all very important questions and I invite you to join me in 2012 as I share with you how I came to find a balance in this Kingdom Life. I will share with you how important I believe it is to become a part of the solution to finding peace in our communities instead of dividing and creating wars among ourselves. I hope that my input in 2012 can be a positive contribution to the ongoing discussion on living a life in Christ based on faith, but in no way do I intend to produce a new format for living the Christian life. I don’t believe that my path is going to be the final formula of success that everyone needs a carbon copy of. I don’t want to be the next guru who is trying to convince you that I have all the answers, nor do I want anyone to put me on a pedestal. I’m just a person on a journey and I invite you to be a fellow traveler with me.

Filed Under: Grace, Organic Faith Tagged With: , , , ,

Serena Speaks Out

November 10, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Sometimes the blogosphere and Facebook can feel like high school. The cliques of folk who are steeped in their religious superstitions and battles over who has the ‘right’ doctrine makes me nauseous. These last few years I have wrestled with my beliefs, but my faith remains constant…I hope.

But when a raw and honest blogger like Serena opens up about how she felt like the odd ball at the Relevant Conference, my ears perked up. It takes guts to speak up like that about a conference where you’re one of the speakers.

I don’t think she is criticizing the conference necessarily, but she is opening the discussion for those who feel awkward in Christian circles.

{She’s a gal after my own heart.}

She says put your ‘big girl panties’ on.

Yes, there are those of us who don’t feel like we fit in. I think this is just a part of life. I posted a question on my Facebook wall a while ago and I simply asked if anyone else ever felt insecure. The comments filled up quickly!

After leaving organized Christianity, I was told on numerous occasions that being a Christian doesn’t mean we are “Lone Rangers”. Oh really? Are you sure about that? Because no matter how many Christian conferences or churches we go to, we battle with feeling out of place.

I was blessed at Relevant10 with my HSBA friends who included me to sit with them whenever I needed a seat. But I did notice Serena…she didn’t have the longest line at the book signing. I heard people say they didn’t even know who she was. But then again..another friend of mine said she never heard of Ann Voskamp either.

But do you know what else I noticed? Serena Woods and Ann Voskamp knew who I was. And that meant the world to me.

When someone like Serena says she felt like the odd ball, I sit here dumbfounded. I scratch my head and smack myself in the face a bit…how could SHE feel like an odd ball? Serena the book author, public speaker, and raw honest blogger? An odd ball? Naaaaa.

So what is it about a Christian community that leaves us feeling like we just don’t fit in? What is it that makes someone as special as Serena Woods feel like she is an odd ball?

I think her vlog says it all.

And maybe we need a reminder…to reach out and say hello…because saying hello might mean the world to someone.

Filed Under: Friends Tagged With: , , , , ,

Church is not a One Stop Shop

November 5, 2011 by Leave a Comment

With the hope of an upcoming move and a new community we have considered finding a church. My husband and I have discussed it, and while we both agree that we will never “join” a church again..we are open to the idea of attending.

The previous years of pain still haunt us, but we don’t want to be in a new city alone, in isolation, yet we are cautious of our hearts because the pain is still fresh.

And so it is with all this in mind that I considered that maybe church is not meant to be a One Stop Shop. Why is it that we assume that ‘such and such’ church has all our needs? Why is it that we assume that one specific church will have everything we’re looking for in a community? When we do this, we will always find ourselves disappointed.

Since we both firmly believe that we, the people, are the church, then perhaps the idea of church is not properly measured and boxed up in one specific location.

Maybe church is what we create around us. Prayerfully selecting friends to be our community of support. Gathering with them at various times over coffee, a dinner, or maybe a picnic lunch at the park.

They may not all have the same beliefs, creeds, or perspectives that we have and I think this is a good thing. It’s how we grow…by being around people who are different.

With this perspective we get to choose who we want in our ‘church’ without anyone feeling elitist..no one will know they were ‘chosen’. There is no membership required, no need to ask for money, no creed to abide by. We will have various friends and acquaintances, but some will be held closer to our hearts than others…and only we will know. They will be held close because they have earned our trust, not because they came with the One Stop Shop.

This is not a promise that these folks won’t be faulty people…but there’s a difference between faulty people who genuinely work at a relationship and faulty people who could care less.

I think when we pour ourselves into ministering to others, we become drained. I love to minister, but I need ministering too. I think it’s very important to get myself around people who can minister to me so I have the strength and energy to minister to others. We each have energy, but when we are around others who require energy from us, we find ourselves depleted and needing to be recharged. We need a healthy balance and only we know who charges us and who needs charging.

I also have a deep desire to find ways to minister that I know will be appreciated. Sometimes it’s good to minister in ways that we can be sure of a positive result of appreciation. How can we be so sure that our ministering will be appreciated? By ministering through nature. I have become a firm believer in giving back to the earth that God has given to us. When I till the ground to give roots more room to grow, I can see the appreciation when the plants grow larger. When we volunteer our time to pick up litter in the park, we see the appreciation on the children’s faces as they gleefully run through the grass and gaze happily up into the trees.

I think having a balance of ministering to nature as well as ministering to other humans will yield different forms of appreciation that nourishes us.

We also have a firm belief in sowing and reaping. The amount that you reap will be in proportion to the amount that you sow. However, I do not believe that giving $10 to the soup kitchen will yield an exact $10 back to you in a lottery ticket. I don’t think that’s how ‘sowing and reaping’ works. I believe that the sowing and reaping has to do with the heart and energy you put into something. This also means that the amount of negative you sow will be reaped as well. For this cause, I believe it is very important that we take our actions and thoughts more seriously and approach life with reverence and caution. Allow each day to be purposeful and reach out with a bountiful measure of positive energy.

Living each day in hope, rather than fear. Offer love and not rejection. Be wise and not flippantly disrespectful. Make the most of each day and the day will make the most of you.

This is how we will find community in our future.

This might be found in a family at one church and in the family that volunteers at the local park. It might be in feeling the warmth of the sun as we read books at the beach or in feeding seed to the birds at the wild life reserve.

Filed Under: Healing Tagged With: , , , , ,

Dear Christians

October 30, 2011 by 16 Comments

Dear Christians,

In case you missed it, I wrote a letter to Jesus before this one. Please understand that I love Jesus. I have come out of a 15 year storm called a cult and have needed to re-examine all of my beliefs to make sure of what was really MY beliefs and what was theirs. I needed to sort through all that mess, dump a bunch of it, and start over. I have come to what I believe, is a healthy balance for my faith in Christ. I have beliefs now..that are my very own. I agree with a lot that my fellow Christians believe, and yet there is plenty I disagree about as well. I guess this is just a part of what being a Christian means..we’re all unique.

ceiling of church by sisterlisa, on Pix-O-Sphere

I love to see when people of any faith, reach out to the oppressed, wounded, and destitute…but it thrills my soul even more when I see a Christian do so.

I’m tired of having to quote bible verses to back up what I believe. I’ve been called a heretic, infidel, false teacher, not a real Christian, a self proclaimed Christian, and accused of being on a slippery slope and on the path of the devil. Seriously? All by so called fellow Christians.

It is very evident to me that several denominations of Christians do not want anyone to be a ‘Christian’ unless it means they succumb to their specific statement of beliefs. Getting people into one thought of the bible over another is an absolute joke. Push people away if you really feel you must, but your rejection of my faith in Christ has no bearing on my relationship with him. I don’t have to prove my beliefs to you or Christianity at large in order to be a partaker in the life of grace.

Furthermore, no one else has to live up to your standards of what a Christian is. It’s like being an American. Not every American is patriotic, but it doesn’t mean they aren’t Americans. You can judge each other all you want, but you really only further your own disease of hypocrisy.

You may want to push the heretics away, but it’s not up to you on who gets to say they believe in Jesus. You might feel justified in bullying them out of your church, but Jesus still loves them. They’ll find another place to make friends, they will heal, and they will walk their own spiritual path regardless of whether or not you approve.

They might have real wine at their gatherings, or smoke medicinal marijuana. They might be gay or not circumcised. They might lounge on the beach in a string bikini too and none of these things stops a person from following Jesus and claiming to be a Christian. In fact, many Christians violate children and cover it up, cook their books, and manipulate people into shunning their families if they don’t attend the same church…and they still call themselves Christians.

You know what’s interesting though? Jesus never said to become a Christian. So whatever being a Christian means, maybe we can just start anew. It might be a good thing if we start off by getting over ourselves and stop thinking we have the rule book on what it means to be a Christian. Better than that, lets stop beating each other over the head with the bible and just live life.

SisterLisa

Related Articles:

Dear God

Dear Jesus

To the Devil

To the Pastors

Filed Under: Grace Tagged With: , , ,

Christianity Outside of Christianity

October 25, 2011 by 3 Comments

Why does being a Christian have to be accompanied by such long lists of qualifications? Who says you can’t be a Christian unless you believe the whole bible is inerrant? Why do so many churches hide their deeper doctrines until you have proved yourself enough to be let in on their little secrets? Maybe you’ve believed in Jesus, but you just can’t stomach the hypocrisy of many of today’s churches, you’re not alone.

I’m about to tell you something that most clergy will despise and I’ll most likely be accused of heresy for telling you this…but you don’t “need” a church, a pastor, or even the bible to believe in Jesus.

Pausing…looking up…no lightning. I haven’t been struck down with leprosy like Miriam, I haven’t been “killed by the Holy Ghost” like Ananias and his wife, Saphira.

Why is it that people say to walk by faith, but we’re afraid that God will strike us down if we do?

There’s a Christ that frees us so we can walk by faith and a false christ that imprisons you in the bondage of fear.

There is a simpler way to live this life in Christ…a way to walk in faith, to be bold in grace, to approach the throne with gladness.

This fellowship of believers that walks in freedom is the Royal Priesthood of believers where the only middle man is Jesus. No pope, pastor, bishop or deacon to rule over you.

There’s no agenda, no hidden doctrines, all the cards are laid out on the table. You’re a Living Epistle.

It’s where we’re all equal and all are loved and accepted.

Are there boundaries? Of course there is. No abundant life is worth really living unless each person has their own personal boundaries. You have a right to have your own boundaries. It’s wise to have boundaries, your own personal space. If anyone violates your space, you have a right to speak up about it.

This kind of fellowship is an open door, just respect it for what it is. Respect each person’s soul liberty.

You can study your bible, any version you want.

This journey to understanding this life in Christ is never ending. You’ll never “arrive” but you’ll never be less than. It’s an adventure and any one of us could ‘be onto something’ or ‘be missing a few marbles’, but we’re to treat each other with dignity.

Here’s where we get to the nitty gritty…no bullying!

Any ‘teaching’ that breeds fear, arrogance, elitism, control, shaming, shunning, violating of another person, is strictly forbidden. Any ‘teaching’ that puts a person under threat, frightens them for their future, eternity, or a loved one’s future or eternity, is off limits!

Women are equal and will not be silenced, abused, or oppressed.

Children are treasured and are not to be violated, forced into slavery, or abused in any way.

Is there such a place?

Well, yes and no. There are others on this journey, but no official building, entity, 501c3 or otherwise.

This is because we are free. We gather in homes, at the park, online, at the beach or wherever we choose to.

How do you find people like this to gather with? Simply speak up.

I realize this many not be a popular article or concept among Christianity. In fact, many of us have already been accused of heresy, rebellion, or told we’re on a ‘slippery slope’. I’m pretty sure if Jesus were born in the 70′s he’d be accused of the same things today. But now we live in America where we won’t be crucified, put to death, or whipped with a cat of nine tails for speaking up about our freedom.

We have soul liberty, we ARE the church, the people are the Temple, and the Living Word is written on our hearts.

There’s a spiritual life to enjoy and it’s about time we start enjoying it.

Filed Under: Faith, Organic Faith Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,
«Older Posts