A Few Moments with Mel

Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend a presentation sponsored by Lorence Wenke in Kalamazoo. He invited Mel White (see photo and a portion of his bio below) to speak to pastors and church leaders about the topic of homosexuality.

Allow me to step back a few years in time…In my sophomore or junior year at Hope College, Mel came and spoke to the student body during what was a ugly and hurtful time to be a student at Hope College. I recall what was supposed to be a conversation on campus become bashing from both sides of the conversation. I recall many students including a close friend of mine transferring schools due to the harmful words and rhetoric taking place on campus. There was deep lack of love of Jesus.

Ever since that time I have realized that the church needs to find a more Christ-like manner to have love people, have conversations and engage the issue of homosexuality. My goal today was to hear the words from one of the most influential leaders in the United States and gauge the pulse of the pastoral community of the area. Here are a few observations…

* The room was packed with people from each extreme and all walks of life

* I had a brief conversation with Mel before the meeting and he was surprised and encouraged that someone from a Bible church was there…I’m not sure what that says about Bible churches.

* His heart was not for any sort of agenda (which gets overused) but rather for hurting human beings.  Many whom take their own lives over this issue and feeling like outcasts.  He shared that a gay teenager is seven times more likely to kill themselves then a straight teen.  There is an obvious battle going on…where is the church?

* The question and answer forum was engaging and informative as people shared

* I must admit, although I did not agree with everything he said (when do I agree with everything anyone says) I was very much saddened by a group of pastors from the local area, whom a few I know, from the moment they sat down from their body language was not open to anything he said and honestly were rather rude as they sat in front of him.

* The church, church leaders, and Christians do not have to agree with the issue or the beliefs but anyone who claims to follow Jesus and have Jesus’ heart has to see others straight or gay as human beings.  As men and women that Jesus died for and loves today.

As I mentioned before this is a difficult issue for the church.  We need to have appropriate conversations about this and really seek Jesus’ heart.  The reason I say this is because we are destroying people.  My heart broke when I heard about someone I know sharing about someone being gay, the response of the other person was, “They know they are going to hell, right?”  My question to this person and every other person that says this and other hurtful things…show it to me in the Bible.

If you read this and have been hurt by a Christian over this issue…I apologize and want you to know that Jesus deeply loves you!

From the Bio of Mel White at SoulForce: “The Rev. Dr. Mel White has been a Christian minister, author and ghostwriter for Billy Graham, Pat Robertson, and Jerry Falwell, and filmmaker all his adult life. Raised as a evangelical Christian, taught that homosexuality was a sin, he fought to overcome his own homosexual orientation for decades in all ways available to him: prayer, psychotherapy, exorcism, electric shock, marriage and family. That struggle and his halting, poignant steps to understand and accept his homosexuality, reconcile it with his Christian faith, and express his sexuality respectfully and responsibly.”

Mighty Warrior

November is here. The cold weather arrives, the leaves are falling, and most importantly, the Michigan/Ohio State football game is right around the corner. At the end of the month we with gather together with family and friends for the holiday of Thanksgiving. This is often the time where we are able to reflect on our surroundings and give thanks. But what if you think or feel that you have very little to be thankful for?

On Friday night I shared a passage with the 20’s and 30’s group from Judges 6. Israel had walked away from God and they were being oppressed by Midian. They were so afraid of Midian that the Israelites were hiding and living in caves and clefts in the mountains. It is in this time when we meet Gideon. Gideon is going about life, working when he is called by God to partner with him to set the nation free.

It really is a humorous situation. God calls Gideon “mighty warrior” (although he is hiding in a winepress) and tells him to save Israel. Gideon gives God two excuses, first that his surrounding circumstances are too great and could not be overcome (v. 13). And his other excuse was that he was not able to do it because of his own personal shortcomings (v. 15).

Reflecting upon this passage you may be wondering what this has to do with giving thanks. First, God has placed you upon this earth, just as he did with Gideon, to accomplish something great in the Lord’s name. There is no mistake about who you are and who God has shaped and is shaping you to become. God has you here in this moment, at this very time, for a very specific reason. Second, God calls each one of us “mighty warrior”. Too often we destroy ourselves with our thoughts and words when each one of us are created in the image of God and if we know Jesus, we have access to the Holy Spirit who is our power source. Third, often the two main excuses we give about not being able to do something for God includes our surroundings holding us back and us not being good enough. Gideon has these same factors but rose above them because he knew that God had called him to something more then just simply exist in hiding. God answered Gideon, that He would be with him and that Gideon would strike down Midian.

We can be thankful that we are not mistakes. We can be thankful that God has set our life in motion to accomplish something great for him right now. We can be thankful that God is not done shaping us. We can be thankful that God encourages and blesses us. We can be thankful we are created in God’s image. We can be thankful that no matter what our circumstances and personal shortcomings are, we can still be used by God for the advancement of his Kingdom. We can be thankful that God is with us.

A New Idea

This summer Joanna and I traveled along the west coast.  We were able to visit two different churches, Mosaic in Pasadena and then Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley.  I was deeply impressed by the way the Lord was working in and through this ministry.  Looking at their website that week I discovered information on a building project they were planning.

Granted we could never do anything like this in Michigan, this has challenged me as a church leader who has just gone through a master planning process with our church to think differently.

Take a minute to check the church at by clicking here.

Reveal

I spent my day in Kalamazoo at a the Reveal conference sponsored by Willow Creek and hosted at Christian Life Center.

I honestly had low expectations for the day and went hoping to discover a few fresh nuggets that could help us at FBC. I was very pleased and excited leaving the conference. I am slowly but surely discovering how I am wired for ministry.

I have this bizarre combo of raw street level ministry passion and also this excitement of church growth, stats, numbers, moving people to deeper levels of commitment in the church.

Greg Hawkins, the executive pastor at Willow taught our session of various church leaders. He threw out the model that many churches use to make disciples of running them through “church activities” to deepen their spiritual growth. A traditional model which is not connecting with a post modern culture but as he shared even within the current church culture.

In this survey of 16,000 people from various churches (diverse sampling) he shared numerous interesting findings. I was really encouraged and challenged by what people (these are church folk) said were the most important to them. 1. Challenges me to grow and take next steps. 2. Helps me understand the Bible in greater depth 3. Helps me develop a personal relationship with Christ 4. Helps me apply the Bible to my life. Reasons 7 and 8 were all about serving the world.

See, I chew on this and reflect on how easy it is to bash the church when as leaders we need to look and see how we are doing in equipping the church. While in California a classmate became visibly upset as how the church was being talked about and scolded us leaders and reminded us how Christ loves the church.

People want to grow. People want to learn and apply the word to their life. People want to serve.  How are we helping them do this? Do we think we do this and then send them out to fail.

There is no doubt the church is not perfect…in fact lots of work has to be done. I am thrilled to be living in a day when God is doing deep and amazing work in and through His people.

SHIFT Sunday

This past Sunday our ministry went to two services. The day was great and a huge step into the future of the ministry.

The morning began with an excited group for the early service. This service has a traditional flavor. When I stood before the group to share a few announcements I was blessed by the many smiles I saw and antisipation for the service. The group sang familiar hymns and heard a message and challenge from pastor. It was great to see some new people join us.

In between the two services, many people moved into the new coffee bar and enjoyed various drinks both hot and cold. The space was a great place to gather, connect, and develop relationships.

The second service started off with the song “Dare You to Move” and then led into worship. This service had a more contemporary flavor.  Following worship pastor challenged the group.

It was a great first Sunday and we look forward to sharing more about what the Lord is doing in and through the church.

This upcoming Sunday I will be teaching in both services.