Nov column

This is my November column in our monthly newsletter:

Disciples On the Journey with Jesus

Grace and peace to you my dear sisters and brothers in Christ. Even as we share "our" best ideas with one another, we must confess that it is only by the grace of God that we have been able to accomplish anything in this world. In heady times such as these, the attributes of humility and spiritual journeying are vital for we disciples. Otherwise we wind up tussling more over who is "right" and who is "wrong" than seeking together to know God in the world and to share Christ with the world.

As a church we have come through some difficult times. But as we look around us, we are seeing that this is not just happening at Fairlawn-West. Church after church is struggling with how to be a servant of Christ at a time when the world seems to ignore us more and more.

The scriptural stories of our ancestors are important for us! Time after time they found themselves losing their power and identity. They were confused. They were angry. But God continued to send messengers to them to keep them focused on his mission more than crying over their lost power. They never really did lose their identity. But they had been so used to the world around them reinforcing who they were that they lost their spiritual connection with God, who always did and always will tell them who they really are...the people of God, disciples of Jesus Christ, apostles to the world.

Listen...! Do you hear God speaking to us? In among all the clamoring voices of the world around us and all the noises of the world around us and all the insistent voices inside our own heads...do you hear the voice of God? God is telling us that the vital issues of our time are not terrorism or homosexuality* or abortion. God is telling us.... What is God telling us? How do we know as a community of faith how to listen, to discern, and then speak the will of God to the world? We are use to the secular western value of "having the right to speak my mind and make my vote". But in the body of Christ, the higher value is how to discern together what is the will of God and then to share that Good News with the world around us. And in the Bible they didn’t used a majority vote to make their communal decisions. They first found their spiritual center in God and then sought as a community of faith to flesh that out together. They were more focused on listening to and honoring God than having their rights as individuals. In fact Paul especially in Galatians talks about the freedom we have in Christ as we give up individual demands and prerogatives to serve God.

This congregation has struggled to learn how to listen, to discern and to grow in God's will. A concern I had five years ago during our financial campaign for our renovation was that it would reinforce the exact opposite values and behaviors than God was asking to have. That is, "building" up Fairlawn-West at the cost of building up the body of Christ. We have sought to recover from that temptation! It has not been easy. We have had growing and discerning spiritual leaders who have guided us on that journey. Some have paid personal sacrifices. Some found the price too high. Some are finding new vigor. And newer folks are feeling called by the clearer identity in Christ that we are communicating to the world around us.

Please pray for the church of Jesus Christ. Pray for all prophets and leaders who are called to serve God in a time when there is such turmoil and confusion. Pray that as a community of faith we can let go of all our supposed "needs" and be fully devoted to being a disciple of Jesus Christ.

Grace and peace,
David Loar, a brother in Christ

*If some folks among want to protect marriage, I would suggest outlawing divorce before they seek to keep gay and lesbian couples from honoring one another and God by blessing their loving commitments to one another. Next, I would suggest that they help develop spiritually deep ministries to guide all couples as they prepare for their marriage instead of spending so much time and money on wedding decorations, clothing, and receptions.