Something Else to Occupy

It seems more frequent than normal around this time of the year that I see and hear a six-letter word being tossed around like a piece of chicken in a shake-n-bake bag. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good piece of chicken, but it seems that people are using this word just because it’s the new “in” thing and it has shown to rally people together. The word, which is one of the 2011 most popular words is “occupy”. Everywhere you turn you can’t miss it: occupy wall street, occupy Christmas, occupy church, occupy the bathroom…the list goes on and on. It has all stemmed from the few people that turned this word into a nationwide movement to stop the 1% from becoming more wealthy and the 99% from being more oppressed. And, as we’ve seen his movement grow stronger and stronger, most of us can’t help but think: what if we could tap into this rally cry with a single word? What if we could use this to rally people around other worthwhile causes? This is especially true within the faith. But as I see all these churches around the country try to spur people on by making “occupy fill-in-the-blank” slogans and phrases, I don’t see it working. Church’s seem to try and take the easy way out by attaching this word to a phrase and expecting the doors to burst open.
There is just one major difference between the people that use this phrase as a rally cry and all the other people that use this word: they were PUSHED. Something snapped. Whether it was one person or one event or one circumstance, something within them yearned for something so much more and they were so sick and tired of the same-old that they decided to do something about it. Whether it was popular, well-liked, or even supported didn’t make a lick of difference. It’s inspiring, it’s motivational, and it is truly a cry for change. And it’s working. No question there. But there are questions when we see this term used everywhere else…what is the point of implying the term if no one is willing to back it? Where’s the desperation for transformation in Christ? Where OUR yearn for something greater than ourselves? Do we want to change anything at all or is money the only thing that rallies us? This word can be a powerful one, but we must want it…and I mean truly want it. There are spiritual renewals springing up all over the world but when it comes to the United States, many of us have our comfy, boxed Christianity and we’re comfortable with it. Our churches try to urge us on and push us, but we’re comfortable right here. Many of us believe we have already been “occupied”. Have we really? For the sake of Christ, His love, and His Kingdom…let’s snap.

Jan. 8 and I’m already tired

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love a good mid-day nap and sleeping in until 11am when I get a chance just like many others.  This doesn’t involve the physical sleep that we all enjoy and, I’m willing to bet, many of us need.  I’m talking here about being tired of the church adapting  to the American dream.  The more and more I read, the more and more I see all the little things that depict Jesus as a middle-aged white guy who wants to be your friend.  We’ll be talking about taking the church back from the American dream in later weeks here at The Source, but the time is now.  We think we need great music, good food, hyperactive greeters, and someone who is a dynamic speaker to make church “good”.  Where does Jesus fit into this?  What if The Source had old music, no food, not even a projector, but we encountered the living Word of God…would you still come? I was listening to a Christmas song during the holiday season that, even though was done beautifully, made me shake my head about how we depict the nativity.  The first verse of the song goes like this:

In the bleak mid-winter
Frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron,
Water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
Snow on snow,
In the bleak mid-winter
Long ago.

Really?  I think if people placed the story back in the context it came from, it would be clear that snow was probably no where around Bethlehem.  Yet, since we celebrate it at this time, this has to be what it looked like.  Like this song, there are many things we rationalize away in the Bible and by doing so, we do God’s Word an injustice.  Jesus didn’t really want us to place Him over our families, Jesus really doesn’t call us to give away everything, and the list goes on.  Christ’s words are definitive but today’s culture has taught us that they aren’t.  So what do we do about it?

I think it comes down to something I learned in my ethics class this past semester: the “other”.  It is going to take a radical change of mentality into thinking about everyone but ourselves.  Last time I checked, the two most important commandments include loving God and others.  We aren’t either of those.  Quickly, off the top of your head, can you name two people today that you have lifted up?  We need to ask this question EVERY DAY.  I challenge all of us (myself included) to make a different kind of New Year’s Resolution that can start to rectify this radical thinking.  We all think of ways on how we can better ourselves in our resolutions, so how bout making a resolution that betters a handful of others throughout the year? Financially, spiritually, physically, emotionally, how can we edify the other in way that shows that only God can receive the glory for it instead of ourselves?  Our church must be committed to being transformed into something radical because eternity lies in the balance.  And even if people say we’re crazy or that we shouldn’t “ruffle feathers”, the truth of Christ outweighs any of this.  May this be our goal and passion for the New Year.

And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making all things new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” -Revelation 21:5

What it means to be like Christ..

Finally, it is posted!  David Crowder has an amazing video for a song that has become very close to my heart.  Enjoy and reflect on how you can shine your light that Christ has blessed you with through His infinite mercy and grace.

Prove It

I really love the beginning of new semesters.  I love it as the weather starts to get more comfortable to be out in.  I love the energy and excitement (per se) as students come back and gear up for a new year.  I love the opportunity that it brings to reconnect with people after a busy summer.

But what really excites me is the uncertainty.  You know, the feeling that comes when you enter a new grade or start a new position or a new job.  And I think that is what is exciting about our new campaign, Prove it.  I include myself in this conversation because I, along with many other churches and Christ-followers, have slipped into spiritual nominalism.  Church is just a ritual and, as one of my fellow associates put it today, we come without expecting much.  But, as one reads into the life and ministry of Jesus, we see that for Christ, words and affirmation weren’t enough for Him.  They were important, but Christ constantly challenged his followers to prove that they love Him.  For example, Christ told the man who wanted to follow Jesus but wanted to bury his dead father first, “No, let the dead bury the dead.  Follow me NOW”.  I think the necessity for change is among us.  It is time that we prove to each other, those around us, and the cities we live in who we say we are.  And with that brings great uncertainty.  It’s exciting and scary all at the same time.  But it’s NEEDED.  We need to start bringing the church to those outside of the walls instead of expecting them to come in.  It’s not about programs, it’s about people.  It’s time to do radical things that get messy with those around us as we get to know and care for them.  But it’s not just love, it’s love with a message from the creator of love.

This week, we examined the life of Barnabas and how he was a true Son of Encouragement.  It was because of Barnabas’ encouragement that we have the gospel of Mark and Paul’s epistles.  We must give honest and specific encouragement to each other, both the people we don’t know well and the people we know intimately.  It’s uncomfortable, but it’s what we are called to do and displays true hope.  So the challenge this week is this…find someone you don’t know at all or don’t know well.  Start up a conversation with them (neighbor, waiter, waitress, etc…) and get to know them a bit.  Then, during or at the end of the conversation, give them a specific word of encouragement that ministered to you and watch the response.  We will be discussing that this Sunday and we invite you to join us at 9:30 in the Activities Building of Southern Hills UMC in Lexington, KY as we learn what in means to be the Church.

P.S. – Just for the record, I also love the beginning of semesters because it means NFL and fantasy football are close at hand…

Reflections on Israel: Part I

Shores of the Sea of Galilee

As many of you know, Kate and I got the opportunity to visit the land that is close to the heart of God:  Israel.  It was such a powerful trip and I took in so much as I visited the same places that Jesus and the disciples walked, performed miracles, and grew together.  Words cannot describe the feelings I felt there, but I thought I would try for the next few or so posts.

Kate and I on the Sea

First…I HATE AIRPLANES.  I used to not mind riding in them at all, even almost enjoyed them.  But for some reason, maybe old age, I really get anxious and nervous flying.  But with all that being said, some of my spiritual reflections happened in relation to airports and airplanes.  A couple of things caught my attention as Kate and I started our pilgrimage to the Holy Land.  The first was our flight attendant who turned out to be an Israeli native.  As she found out the whole entire plane was en route to her native country, she started to cry.  But this cry was different.  It was a cry of pride and honor.  It was a good cry as she couldn’t stop talking about her heritage and was so glad to see us go, knowing that the passengers would have a common bond with her soon.  I’m not sure if she had any kind of faith or not, but I was thinking she did.  The second event that caught my attention was on my way to the bathroom after a GREAT Qdoba meal.  As I passed by a gate, I saw a young couple in obvious pain.  They were weeping uncontrollably as they had to say goodbye to each other.  This made me really start to ponder:  What was the difference?   This might just be rambling…but here were my thoughts.  As I compared these two instances of emotion, I saw trust.  The flight attendant cried with trust that we will meet God just like she has there.  She knew we were trusting that God would be with us and would change our view on our faith in a very real way

In a boat, where Jesus didn't need one to walk

.  The couple who could not let go of each other didn’t have that trust.  They cried with a distrust that they might not see each other again.  It is good to show love in a yearning way but by the actions of this couple, it was obvious they were clinging to their own powers instead of a higher one.  It gave me a whole new perspective on plane rides as I walked down the ramp to the plane doors and I’ll never regret it.

Imagining Christ walking

Church days…

As I was pulling into our driveway after an intense night of extravagant Walmart food shopping, I looked to my right to see the parking lot of Southern Hills United Methodist Church filled to capacity on a Wednesday night.  As I saw this, I couldn’t help but grin.  My wife asked why I was smiling and I told her that I thought it was so cool that our church does not consider Sunday to be the only church days.  I walked through the parking lot and saw windows open with church members teaching classes and aerobics classes going through routines.  I think that when Paul helped start the early church in Acts 2, this was his vision:  church that happens everyday.  I have been to so many churches that have had great attendance and services every Sunday but become a wasteland every other day of the week.  I love it that where I’m at now, people are at the church almost every day and night participating in varies activities, growing in community and faith.  Yes, there are sometimes where the church is deserted, but it could be much worse.  I think for Paul, church was something that invades all aspects of life and is an EVERYDAY worship of God.  Church WAS life as people continuously prayed, worshiped, and served.  People came to a common institution in Christ to find rest and energy, just like people today can come to churches and find community and growth to shape their lives.  I might just be rambling, but these are my thoughts lately.  Faith in Christ is supposed to shape everything else we do, not vice versa.  As many know, I am a HUGE sports fan (even though I follow a team that doesn’t give me anything to cheer for except field goals:  The Cleveland Browns).  I love watching people come together and unite as one city to root for a team.  Being at a Cleveland Cavaliers playoff game, that feeling sent chills down my spine as I saw this passion come out for the Cavs to win it all and continue to fight.  This makes me think…What if we can get people that excited about the church?  What would it look like?  How much stronger would our bond be to Christ and others?  Maybe one day.

P.S. – I just finished listening to “Church Music”, the new album by the David Crowder Band… It was absolutely amazing (Translated – you MUST check out Crowder’s new music!)

The lessons of mission

Wheezer

Man, going to another culture and country really opens your eyes to how faith is lived out among God’s people.  On our past mission trip to Guatemala, I was reawakened to the power of God and just how passsionate following Christ can be.  As our host for the week, Fontaine Greene, said “You will see that the people of Guatemala are poor in material, but rich in Spirit”.  I wish that the United States was more like that.  It’s so easy in our culture to get sucked into gaining more and figuring that if someone has enough stuff, they must be doing God’s work the right way.  From this past trip, I learned much about myself and the faith I aspire to have.  First are foremost, the American way is not the best way  to reach God and to live life in general.  The purpose of mission is not to come in and “rescue” those who live in a different lifestyle.  Who are we to tell them if they need “rescuing”?  Many people that I encountered in Guatemala were happy with their culture and life because of the love and joy of God that filled them.  Our purpose for mission is to build each other up and support each other in the body of Christ.  One man, Edgar, that we were with the whole week, embodied this Spirit.  He had gone through some tough times recently, but I always saw him with a smile on his face and a joke on his tougue.  We were able to contribute money to him to buy windows for his house (which were covered in plastic only) and they tears of joy that he shed when we told him made me feel the Holy Spirit in a new and exciting way.  Secondly, I learned that breaking down walls and extending one’s comfort zone is a must in faith.  Americans and Guatemalans would walk down the same street and look at each other with a look that declared a difference in lifestyle and culture.  But as soon as a “Buenos dias…” or “Dios te bendiga” (God bless you) was said, those walls were broken.  I know some Spanish (enough to make me dangerous…) but being in a country where it was spoken all the time, I became apprehensive to speak to anyone.  I streched my comfort and decided to try and communicate one day and the Spirit took care of the rest.  My Spanish came back to me quickly and by the end of the trip, I was understanding about 90% of the Spanish I heard and speaking the language well.  Finally and most importantly, I learned that no matter what we try to do on Earth, God has an ultimate plan.  The thing that matters most in life is not what we do or accomplish, it’s who we are in Christ.  We must never forget our first love because of the dire consequences of this forgetfulness.  I learned this as I held a young boy named “Wheezer” who, when born, was tied up in a garbage bag and put in a dumpster to die.  One year later, he was healthy and in my arms, laughing and playing as he enjoyed the new life God had blessed him with.  God had and still has a plan for him, even though man tried to end him…

Twitter Time

Come check us out on twitter now!  Username –> ShumySource

See you on the web!

-Adam

Where’s the laughs?

For any of you that don’t know me, I love pratical pranks and jokes.  I think God created humor for a reason.  I even think God has a sense of humor.  Have you ever read 2 Kings 2:23-24?  I find that to be a bit humorous that these kids make fun of a prophet and then get eaten by a bear.  In fact, one of favorite depictions of Christ is seen here in this photograph…

The first time I saw this picture was a Asbury Seminary and I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw it.  It made me realize that Christ enjoyed life and we are to do the same.  He found great joy in people and in the blessings that the Father has given to His people.  Where has that gone in today’s society?  We are so busy going here to there with meetings, sports practices, get togethers, and the like that we have lost sight on how to BE instead of what do DO.  The Source will be staring a sermon series in late August and early September on what it means to just BE.  I think everyone, including the church, needs to get back to enjoying what God has given us instead of worrying about tomorrow and what it will bring.  Whenever I start to lose sight of this, I love having reminders like this picture to bring me back to the joy I know in Christ.  Practical pranks give me this feeling as well… What are your thoughts to this?  Enjoy these!

-Adam

Reflections on Easter

Welcome to the brand new blog for The Source!  Please feel free to post your thoughts, comments, reflections, etc… here so we can grow in Christ together and learn from one another.  I’ve had the opportunity to have several different personal reflections on the event of Easter.  I wondered where this event even got the name “Easter” in the first place.  Why not “Resurrection Sunday” or something like that?  The term actually has its roots in Hebrew, which means “blessed” and “happy”.  What blew me away was another meaning that the Hebrews would associate with this word.  This word has found to also mean “land of the rising sun” (because the sun rises in the EAST), which correlates with Easter being the celebration of the rising SON.  How awesome is that???  That really fires me up as I ponder what the feelings and emotions were like on this day and the ones afterwards.  This past week, my wife and I traveled to Cleveland to be with Kate’s grandmother who was close to death.  We were able to be with her and to tell her that we loved her.  On Good Friday, after I had driven back to Kentucky, I received the call from my wife that her grandmother had gone to be with the Lord.  I felt the pain of death with her as I heard the sorrow and mourning in her voice.  For the first time in my life, I felt like I connected with the people watching Christ die on that day.  But the inspiring and miraculous thing is that the story does not end there.  After getting the phone call, I came into the sanctuary and took communion.  As I took the bread and the juice, I immediately felt the renewal of the Spirit upon my soul from the sorrow.  I began to realize that Kate’s grandmother was now with Christ on the day we remember His earthly death.  You see, Christ can never have the term “death” associated with him without a adjective before it.  Instead, Christ is known as the victor of death, the conquerer of sin and suffering, the RISEN KING!!!!  I quickly felt the power of the words in one of my favorite songs “Jesus paid it all”:  ”Oh praise the one who paid my debt and raised this life up from the dead!”  Death could not hold him back, just as death can not hold back Kate’s grandmother from being with Him.  Hallelujah, praise the Lord.  Comforting, isn’t it?? This Resurrection Sunday, let us all remember that with suffering comes redemption, with sin comes victory, and with death comes life.