The Body is a Unit

            The following is my church "lead article" for the July newsletter of First Lutheran Church, West Okoboji, Iowa:   

“The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body.”

-          I Corinthians 12:12

 The Apostle Paul understood that the Church of Jesus Christ is most healthy, most effective in its mission, when all the parts are working properly as God designed them.   Every part (member) has a gift to offer, a talent to share for the common good.   Like any human body, the Church functions best when all the parts are working in concert with one another.   Paul writes, “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”

This past year I have been reflecting deeply on the nature of Christ’s church.  Through the struggle and transition, I have been deeply blessed by the variety of members who have stepped forward to share their gifts/talents/passions to help make the body of Christ at First Lutheran stronger.   It truly is a joy to witness the members of our congregation working together in harmony, all for the common good.  As Paul describes so colorfully, “The eye cannot say to the ear, I don’t need you...or the foot cannot say to the hand, I don’t need you.”   We all have a place!  We all have a function!  We all find our greatest fulfillment in relation to one another.

I would like to dedicate this edition of the Proclaim to the humble servants who continue to extend themselves with joy for the work and ministry of Christ’s church, Christ’s body.   I know that if I single out a few, many will be left out.  If I single out many, I will still miss some very important folks who have given so much. 

Dee and I have been carried along this past year by your prayers, affection and sincere willingness to go beyond the call of duty.   The cards, letters, emails, and personal words of encouragement have meant so much.  My 25^th year of ministry may not have been my easiest year, but it was one of the most tender and meaningful.   I am honored to be your pastor and look forward to many new adventures together.

The Church has been around for a long time.  It was instituted by Jesus Christ and empowered by the Holy Spirit.  There will be peaks and valleys.  There will be highs and lows, good times and bad times.  The church will be attacked by enemies within and without.  But as the old hymn says, “The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord.”  It will not be shaken! 

Yes, we are the body of Christ!  We’re not all the same.  We have different functions.  But when we work together in love, GET OUT OF THE WAY!  There’s no telling what God can do in and through us.

May God continue to bless and keep us in grace!  May God’s Spirit bring out our best gifts and use them for the work of his kingdom!

In Christ’s power,

Pastor Bob

New Maps for a New World

I am currently reading a book that I highly recommend.  It's entitled Missional Map - Making "Skills for Leading in Times of Transition" written by Alan Roxburgh. 

This book helps give language to the vague sense of dislocation and anxiety many people feel in today's constantly changing world.  The author claims, and I agree, we are facing a massive cultural shift and transition similar to the dramatic changes in the 4th and 17th centuries.   Many authors have already described this change as a "world view" shift from the modern age to post-modernism. 

This has great implications for the church and its mission.  Here are some quotes I'd like to share with you and let you add your comments or questions.  I am not quite done with the book, but I need to process what I have read so far.

The author's premise is simple:  The old maps no longer help us navigate effectively into this changing environment.  Most churches simply use new versions of the old maps and get frustrated because their efforts don't seem to make a difference to people "outside" the traditional church.  What we need to help us reach new people in this fluid society are new maps.

Here are some words from the book:

If we have crossed such a threshold into a new space, what are the maps that will enable us to navigate this other world into which we have been brought?  What does it look like to form God's people in a place where the maps that once guided us so well no longer help us make sense of the terrritory in which we find ourselves?

By the late 1980s, it had become clear to me that the environment in which the church functioned had changed; it was like a weather pattern that had held for a very long time suddenly being swept away by winds off the lake; we were in a new atmosphere.  The simplest way I could describe that transformation was to say that all our attention to the internal variables (vital worship, small groups, fellowship, leadership, evangelism etc.) of church life no longer helped us understand and engage this changed context.  That didn't mean they were unimportant; it meant they no longer correlated or connected to what was happening in the lives of the people of the neighborhoods and communities in which we live. 

I started to realize I needed a different imagination for what it means to be a church in a community and what it means to lead in such a church.  One of the things this growing realization meant was that it would be possible to be a faithful community of God's people only by reengaging the neighborhoods and communities where we live and learning to ask what was happening among the people of the neighborhood, attending to their stories and cultivating receptiveness to being surprised by what God might already be up to among all these people who aren't thinking about church or even God.  How would I do that?

It seems to me that Alan Roxburgh is very concerned that "good church folk" really don't know what hit them.  Many of us have not accepted the fact the world we live in needs new maps if we are going to connect with the next generations of potential Christ followers.

What will those maps look like?  What goals and strategies will further the Kingdom in this time of transition? 
It seems to me that we are entering a time of listening and reengaging our local communities to better understand and serve them with the love of Christ.

"Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; otherwise, the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved."


                                                                                                - Matthew 9:17
                                
Please add your comments or questions for discussion.

Bob

Married to a pretty good (Great) nurse!

My wife Dee was recently selected as one of the 100 Great Nurses in Iowa for 2011.  She was honored for her excellent work in the area of Infection Control at the Spencer hospital and will be invited to a special event in Des Moines May 1st.  I am, of course, extremely proud of her.  She has quietly gone about her business for nearly 14 years, providing compassionate and innovative care to patients and offering creative and wise leadership in many areas at the hospital. 

Most people at First Lutheran know Dee as  "Pastor Bob's wife" and see her as a great compliment to the work I am called and paid to do.  I don't think the congregation ever knew what kind of 2 for 1 deal they were getting.  Dee so willingly shares in my ministry and the work of our congregation.  But how many people really know what Dee does for a living, working 13 miles away in another community, sometimes removed from the issues and affairs of the Milford/Iowa Great Lakes area?

Her work as a nurse affords her an opportunity to express her own unique calling and vocation.  The people she encounters on a daily basis provide her many opportunities to share God's gifts.  She ministers hope and healing in ways I could never do sitting behind a desk or hiding behind a "clergy collar."  She is out in the trenches, slugging it out with some of the nastiest infections and diseases know to humankind.  She is the resident expert on all the really "bad stuff," that left unchecked, could really make life miserable for a lot of people.

As one who finds himself in the public eye/limelight often (it goes with the territory), Dee is one who faithfully works behind the scenes, doing great things and making a difference in a quiet and unassuming way.  I am so very happy for her and appreciate her many gifts now more than ever before.  I knew when I married this farm girl from West Central Minnesota, I had truly hit the Jackpot!  God blessed me with a life mate who has compassion, wisdom and real backbone. 

Congratulations Dear...Behind ever good pastor is a really GREAT nurse!

Your admiring husband,

Bob

Turning 52

I celebrated my 52nd birthday on Sunday, February 27th with the great folks at First Lutheran.  Dee even made my favorite Red Velvet Cake and shared it with the members during coffee fellowship.  It's always fun to have my birthday fall on a Sunday.  The only bummer of the day came when Amy Kueper asked the children during the Kids Sermon how old they thought I was.  When the first child said 70, I was ready to pull the plug on the sermon and send the little "imps" back to their pews.  Thankfully, a little boy name William came to my rescue by telling everyone I was 17.  He is now my BEST FRIEND!

 I also had a blast bowling in the afternoon with families from both Grace Lutheran and First Lutheran.  What a great event!    I bowled a 155 and 161.  I even got a door prize for the most strikes.  Not bad for an "old guy" who hadn't thrown a bowling ball for ten years. 

There was great fellowship between the two churches and we hope to do more activities together in the future.  I am convinced that congregations need to partner more and shift their paradigms from competition to cooperation.  It's pretty special when churches can celebrate together and provide a common witness to the community.

After that, Dee and I met up with our son Erik on my day off and we skied at Mt. Kato in Mankato, Minnesota.  It was there that I really felt my age.  Erik flew down the black diamonds like he was sleep walking.  It was impressive!  I knew right then I had entered a new chapter of life - a chapter where Dad is suddenly being schooled by his children.  It was humbling, but I'm now over it.

Ok, where are all these "thoughts while shaving" heading?  As I reflect on my 52nd birthday,  I'm reminded that time is on a relentless march.  There is no stopping it.  But I have to admit, it's sort of cool watching my own children surpass old Dad on a number of fronts, athletically as well as academically.  I am so very proud of them for who they are and what they are doing in the world. 

52 may not be one of those Big Birthdays divisible by 5 or 10, but it has left it's mark on me.  Getting older isn't so bad.  The old "machine" is still in pretty good working condition, and there is still plenty of time to embark on a few more adventures.  God is good!  Life is rich!  Be thankful for the simple gifts!

Generous People

The Stewardship Team at First Lutheran is planning a year-long series on Christian giving.  Our hope is to help members grow in their understanding of Biblical Stewardship.  Too many times we emphasize fund raising when our focus should be on "faith raising."  Giving generously to the work of Christ is an adventure in faith that reaps amazing blessings.

Most of us are familiar with the verse from 2nd Corinthians where St. Paul writes, "God loves a cheerful giver."  Joy is a byproduct of generous giving and generous living.  Our gifts and offerings become an expression of gratitude for all that God has done for us.  Christian stewardship is really our sincere expresson of love to the God who freely gives us all good things.

It also helps to know that God already owns everything, and the little we possess is simply on loan from God.  When was the last time you saw a hearse pulling a U-Haul?   I know, it's a joke, but it's a great remeinder that "you can't take it with you."  You might as well have fun giving it away while you can.  Someone else will be dividing it up after you leave this world. 

Think of all the lives we can touch through wise and generous stewardship.  It really is an adventure!
It really is a matter of the heart, an expression of joy!

Pastor Bob

My Favorite Books of 2010

Most pastors are scavengers for good ideas and illustrations.  The Bible is clearly the starting point and source for all good preaching.  But observing people and reading good books helps to give me an endless supply of illustrations for my sermons.  I have found that reading a wide variety of books helps me stay in tune with the issues and ideas that are important to folks.

Here is a top ten list of  really good books I have read this past year:

Life Among the Lutherans by Garrison Keillor

Highest Duty by Capt. "Sully" Sullenberger

The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennen Manning

Coming Back Stronger: Unleashing the hidden power of adversity by Drew Brees

Generous Orthodoxy: Why I Am a Missional, Evangelical, Post/Protestant, Liberal/Conservative,
Mystical/Poetic, Biblical, Charismatic/Contemplative, Fundamentalist/Calvinist, Anabaptist/Anglican, Methodist, Catholic, Green, Incarnational, Depressed-yet-Hopeful, Emergent, Unfinished CHRISTIAN by Brian McClaren

Messy Spirituality: God's Annoying Love for Imperfect People by Mike Yaconelli

Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way by Dan Buettner

Sitting at the Feet of Rabbi Jesus by Ann Spangler and Lois Tverberg

Coming of Age: Exploring the Identity and Spirituality of Younger Men by Roland Martinson and others.

UnChristian by the George Barna Group

If you have read any of these books, feel free to send me your comments and reactions.  If you are thinking of reading one of these books and need a quick review, just let me know.

I would love to hear what your favorite book of 2010 was.  I am already running out of book ideas for 2011 and your recommendations will be much appreciated.

Happy Reading!  What else can we do on these long, cold Iowa winter nights?

Oh, I forgot...I read the new book on Deitrich Bonhoeffer this past summer.  It was excellent!

Blogging in a Blizzard

What a perfect day to launch my very first pastoral post on my very first pastoral blog. I am hunkered down at home with a blizzard raging outside, giving me the chance to create this blog with the mellow voice of Nat King Cole singing the Christmas Song in the background.  Thanks to my dear wife Dee, I have now entered the 21st century, riding high on the currents of modern communication technology.  Dee did a great job creating our Holy Land blog a few weeks ago and now she is the architect of my current pastoral blog.

The Heart for the Mission Task Force at First Lutheran encouraged me to offer this blog to the congregation at our last meeting.  This gives me a chance to reflect and share my "thoughts while shaving" and comment on issues relevant to our life and ministry together. 

 I encourage you to check this blog regularly and interact with it by posting your comments.  This does not replace the monthly pastor's article in the First Lutheran Newsletter, but it gives me a chance to communicate to a larger audience on a more regular basis.