Jesus speaking to His disciples in Matthew 16:18
....And on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
Been doing a lot thinking lately.....
That has the potential of being a dangerous thing, if you know what I mean.
Thinking about church, why we do it.....what do we hope to accomplish from all the activity.
Things like that, all rolling around in my brain.
So, for whatever reason I just happen to have downloaded a series of teaching by Ray Hughes on Worship and the Church to listen to as I cleaned the office last night. About five minutes into the teaching, Ray begins to talk about the personality of the local church. He questioned as to why all churches have this need to take on a form of "doing church" that pretty much is cookie cuttered around the city. For instance....."everyone knows that a church should have a steeple." Why? Why does every church need a steeple. Have we really thought this one out, or do we keep replicating and duplicating the same concept that having a steeple sets us apart so folks know that we are a church. Well, shouldn't our reputation for loving folks be the real calling card to the community, and not some pointy structure that looks like a Titan Missile sitting on a launch pad ready to ascend to the heavens?
You may be thinking that I've either lost it, or I'm a disgruntled, angry old man. Well, I don't think I'm either, and if I were one of the two, I believe I'd come down on 'loosing it". As the teaching from Ray continued, I realized that he was putting language to something that had been rolling around in my head and heart for some time. I realize that I was given an incredible opportunity when I started our first recovery meeting back in 1998. I had no blue print on how to do it. I didn't have any instruction sheet that told me what it should sound like. All I knew was that I felt God wanted us to provide a place where anyone......anyone at all who might either be in recovery, or still in their addiction but was looking for a way out, could come and meet God. That was the entire philosophical / theological mandate I had received from God. Set a time (Saturday night) open the door. Worship God in a way and style that is a reflection of those who come. Love folks and do two things. (1) Teach the Word of God (2) Minister in the Power of the Holy Spirit.(That is a religious way of saying, "Ask God to come and get up all in our business". IN other words, we were to be a place that fulfilled the Matthew 6:10 passage. "Your Kingdom come---Your Kingdom "Will" be done, here on earth as it is being done in heaven." I felt that we were to hold everything loose and just let God run the show. So that is kind of how I have conducted each service since those early days.
I had several people over the years, who attended our meetings, come to me asking how they could duplicate it. My first thought was always, "Why? Why would you want to duplicate something?" I was truly flattered that someone wanted to copy what we were doing, but I also realized that this was a trap that would end badly. Even had one man who wanted me to write a book on how to do recovery meetings. He went as far as to tell me that he'd finance the book and get it out to distributors. I told him that I'd be glad to write a book, but that it would be the shortest book ever. One page........ten words........."Go hear God for yourself, then do what He says."
So over 16 years, the model for us hasn't change much. Why? Because what we do on Saturday nights is a reflection of who we are as a community of believer's. I'm not naive enough to believe that everyone who comes to visit us actually likes how we do church. Over the years I have had my fair share of criticism and complaints. I am grateful that people did love me enough to tell what was on their hearts. And with each criticism, and with ever complaint, I went to God to make sure that I wasn't getting out of line or moving into areas that He did not want me in.
Everything you see when you come to Vineyard Recovery Church....the way the room is set up...the style and sound of our worship....the way we teach and minister was birthed by God from our hearts as a reflection of how we perceive Him and what His desire is for us as a church. Are we trying to be everything to everyone? Not at all. We realize the people that God has called us to love and serve. We bless the entire body of Christ, the church at large, and pray that each group find who they are to minister to. But we will stick to our side of the street and reach out to those who are in addiction, loving them into His Kingdom.
We meet every Saturday night/ 7 p.m.
If you have a free Saturday, come out and join us.
God on you...
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