MIM Ezine, April 4, 2006Table of Contents for This Issue:
-Completing the Church, by Thomas Tumblin -Purpose Filled Ministry, by Teena Stewart -Book Review of The Radical Reformission: Reaching Out Without Selling Out -Classifieds
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Completing the Church Thomas Tumblin, PhD Associate Professor of Leadership, Asbury Theological Seminary District Superintendent, West Ohio Conference United Methodist Church
If George Barna is right, there will be fewer established churches in the United States by 2025. People will be less inclined to attend congregations that no longer challenge them to go deeper in their faith or impact the world. Some will drop out from disillusionment or hurt. Others will seek alternative communities where they experience spiritual sharpening through sometimes loosely coupled relationships. Ineffective churches will continue to go out of business while faithful saints discover new ways to fellowship, worship and serve. (See “The Barna Update,” October 10, 2005 or his book Revolution, both available at www.barna.org ) Regardless of one’s opinion of Barna’s projection, the very possibility ought to capture our attention. We are the stewards of Christ’s Church. As pastors and leaders in the Body of Christ, we now share the responsibility for what happens to local congregations, especially our own. It was so much easier when we could blame the pastor or administrative board. Now, we are they. In my own mainline denomination, where the membership decline has garnered national headlines for decades, Barna appears to be right on target. Most judicatory leaders describe anywhere from twenty to fifty percent of their churches as either stable or growing. When at least half of our congregations are on the downside of vitality, what’s next? Agents of Teleios Throughout the New Testament we see the imperfect creation struggling toward God’s day of redemption. (For example, see Romans 8.) The effect of original sin on the world taints every dynamic of creation. Pain and suffering, until they are cancelled out in the new heaven and earth, accompany us daily. Paul uses the image of the earth being in birth pangs while waiting to be delivered from its imperfect state (Rom 8:22). The Church exists in that same vortex of imperfection. Ironically, the corporate image of God on earth, the human incarnation of the Kingdom of God, wrestles with the same incomplete reality. Theologians call it the eschaton – the “already-and-not-yet” reality that God promises a perfect world with the fullness of God’s redemption, but we have not yet arrived to that reality this side of the Second Coming. That’s why Charles Curran reminds us: “The status quo can never be totally accepted by one who has an eschatological vision.” (As quoted in Christianity Today, August 6, 2001.) The concept for being delivered from the imperfect state to God’s perfection is teleios. The imperfect will give way to the teleios – a completing or maturing until all is right, putting the last piece of the puzzle in place. We push toward the teleios or goal of being whole and complete. In our human condition, we will constantly be fighting atrophy until Christ completes us in the new heaven. Until then, our role becomes pressing toward the goal of God’s ideal. We model the Kingdom of God by being in constant transformation ourselves as we experience the grace of being changed from glory to glory (II Cor. 3:18). We then become agents of transformation in the congregation, calling our brothers and sisters to completeness. We participate in completing what Christ has begun (Col 1:24ff). We have the ministry of binding and releasing. As heirs of Peter’s mantle, we tie down the loose ends that can distract from Christ’s mission. We cut through the ungracious tethers that restrain us from God’s ideal. Old expectations get exchanged for moving toward completeness. We rescue those caught in ruts of tradition and call them forward to healthy transformation. We become agents of God’s grace here in earth that the Kingdom may come as it has in heaven. Escaping Terminal Niceness During my years on staff at Ginghamsburg Church, the senior pastor, Mike Slaughter, would challenge me to let go of my “terminal niceness.” One of my addictions is pleasing people. I do not enjoy conflict and would prefer people to like me. Naturally, the problem comes when that translates to avoiding crucial conversations for moving people forward in Christ’s mission. Every time I must tell the truth in love, I face a teleios challenge. The gaps in my own maturity propel me on a search for grace, for that truth-telling piece of my personality puzzle. If I am to be an agent of the Kingdom of God, then I have no choice but to let God piece together the Kingdom in my own life. Only then can I be useful to the Church in doing the teleios work. Every leader has his or her teleios challenges. For some it may be a volatile temper. For others it might be a lack of discipline. Regardless of the gaps in who we are as leaders, God calls us to press on toward maturity in our own lives as agents of the Kingdom. Until Christ comes again, we will be imperfect servants leading an imperfect church in a fallen world. Until Christ comes again, we will be living eschatons, the “alreadys-and-not-yets” absolutely dependent on God’s grace to piece us together as maturing followers of Christ. Every congregation faces its own teleios challenges. Immature communities of faith distort the image of God on earth. No wonder the number of vibrant local churches continues to decline. Who wants to join an imperfect group? Yet, when that fellowship becomes one of ongoing transformation, the Kingdom of God shows up. The powerful beauty of grace unleashed draws attention. Where are the gaps in your own leadership that God wants to transform? How will God use you to mature your congregation? As agents of teleios, press on to completion.
Rev. Dr. Thomas F. Tumblin has been serving a joint appointment as the Superintendent of the Findlay District and as an adjunct professor at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky since July 1, 2003. Before becoming the District Superintendent he was the Director of the Doctor of Ministry Program and Associate Professor of Leadership at Asbury. Tom is a graduate of Asbury Theological Seminary. He also holds M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Michigan. Tom has served the Edenton UM Charge in the Wilmington District, the Burlington UMC in the Portsmouth District, and as an associate pastor at Ginhamsburg UMC in the Dayton North District. Rev. Tumblin is an able administrator, teacher, vision-caster, and stewardship leader. He also has a strong evangelical faith and is deeply committed to the spiritual life of clergy, laity and congregations. Tom is married to Yvonne. They have three school-age daughters, Hope, Holly and Suzanna. Protect Your Family and Your Computer with Reliable, Safe, Internet Filtering & Anti Virus Software
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Purpose Filled Ministry Let Go!
By Teena M. Stewart
Recently Ministry in Motion changed over from a sole proprietorship to a partnership. If you haven’t already noticed, we are now known as DreamBuilders Ministry in Motion. These days my partners and I are sharing duties and I must say I am breathing a sign of relief as Tom Hanover steps in as editor and Dennis Mohler assumes the role of ezine and website technician. They’re great guys with great vision. The three of us have similar passions and ministry experience but each brings a unique skill set and focus to the table. During this changeover I’ve found myself clinging to my “baby”, longing to keep the ministry the way it was but all the while acknowledging that change and progress is important and is needed. It’s tough. I haven’t always been comfortable with the way things have progressed, and my new partners are adjusting as well. By now they are probably muttering under their breath, “Down, girl, down!” Letting go of control is never easy, especially when we have a standard to which we expect the other party or parties to adhere. It’s very similar to parenting. When a grown child finally leaves the house to go out on his/her own, the hard challenge for the parent isn’t saying goodbye. Chances as we will see our offspring again. The hard challenge is realizing we’ve need to loosen our control. All kinds of thoughts run through our minds. What if our kid does something to really embarrass our family and us? What if our kid puts himself/herself at risk or worse yet causes someone else to crash and burn? What if our child doesn’t manage finances well and is evicted from their apartment. What if? What if? What if? As much as we want to control our adult child’s behavior, the more we try the more havoc we cause. Holding too tightly to something we’ve nurtured can squeeze the life right out of it or even cause that individual to want to stay far, far away from us. It can also cause the other party to feel we don’t trust them. When we’ve worked hard to develop a ministry, it’s often difficult to let others assist. Even more difficult is letting go of the controls so that someone else can manage it. And yet, that is often what we need to do. A church’s lay counseling program launched nearly a year earlier. The church commissioned its counselors in front of the congregation hoping it would not only make its counselor accountable, but that it would work as a promotional device for the ministry. Nearly a year later the ministry remained in the background with few people using it. When a ministry team leader called the lay counseling leader in charge of the program to ask how things were going, he was told, “It’s just so much easier for me to handle it. A lot of the time the calls for counseling come in to me because people know me. I’m afraid if I turn it over to the other co-leader, he will drop the ball. He’s not a strong administrator.” Instead of the lay counseling leader coaching the co-leader on how to set up regular meetings and promote the ministry, the lay counselor in charge was fielding all of the requests for counseling himself. Though he may have had valid concerns about his co-leader, the fact that he could not let go and risk the other leader failing was a roadblock to the ministry’s progression. The ministry team leader pointed out to the lay counselor that he first needed to start passing on some of the counseling opportunities to other team members. Then, he also needed to work with the co-leader to set regular meetings and develop promotional materials so that others knew about the ministry. It wasn’t that there wasn’t a need for the services. The main issue was that the chief leader couldn’t release control. In another case a senior pastor had been with her church since it was first planted. As it grew larger, she found it increasingly difficult to continue to operate from a small church paradigm. Every sign pointed the need for team building, but she was terrified of letting go. What if all her hard work unraveled because of someone else’s incompetence? Letting go is a crucial step in building team. If we cannot let go, if we cannot share the load with others, it will stunt our ministry and we will not be able to grow any larger than our own energy and shortcomings allow. Releasing control involves teamwork. We want to find capable people to take over some of our responsibilities. Here are some things to consider: · Start with one task that you assign to someone else. · Don’t expect them to do it exactly the same way you would. · Train them, and then step out of the way. · Let them know that you are there to coach them if they need it and check in with them to offer support without meddling in the details. · If they do well, give them more responsibility. · Bring trustworthy people along side you who have strengths to offset your weaknesses. · Expect great results but not perfect ones and let those you entrust know that you are counting on them. · Anticipate messes. It’s part of leadership and ministry building. Rarely does releasing control end up in an enormous mess. Most of the time the results simply are not up to our standards of perfection. Remember that God works through imperfect vessels and that you are one too. Chances are if you are thinking “Well, that certainly isn’t how I would have done it.” Someone may be thinking the same thing about you. Refusing to let go might very well be a pride issue. Letting go of control is a key step in leadership training and team building but it should always be done with support. Never give someone an assignment without adequate communication and training and assure them that you are there for them to help them along. Think of someone learning to ride a bike. Sometimes there are crashes, but eventually, after enough practice, the individual learns to ride a bike. In my next column, we’ll look at following up once you do let go. Teena Stewart is a published writer, a ministry specialist and consultant, and a product developer for Ministry in Motion. You can email her at smartwords@sbcglobal.net (Editor’s note: Teena is a delight and we appreciate her patience in coaching us rookies!)
Helping Churches Dream Dreams and Live out their Vision! Book Review: The Radical Reformission: Reaching Out Without Selling Out By Mark Driscoll, Zondervan, 2004, ISBN #0310256593, 200 pages Reviewed by Tom Hanover Mark Driscoll is founding pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle (www.marshillchurch.org) and Acts 29 Network. His opening pages describe his own journey to a radical change in his own life as he discovered God’s call upon his life. In response to that call he journeys into the founding and leadership of a significant ministry with international reach. The book becomes a revealing peek into the convictions and motivations of his leadership in the church and the network. It is also a signpost pointing towards vibrant and vital ministry in the 21st century.
He then borrows from Lesslie Newbigin’s triangular movement of the gospel in relationship to culture and church. It is Driscoll’s conviction that most of the failures in ministry result from the neglect of one of those three legs: gospel, church, and culture. A healthy effective ministry in the 21st century will hold all three in tension. An added feature of Driscoll’s book is the inclusion of 2-3 page interviews at the end of each chapter. These are people Driscoll knows and represent the topic of the chapter. They range from a tattoo artist to a computer programmer to an owner of a pub to a morning radio disk jockey. Each of them shares how they are living out their faith and witness in a circle of people who wouldn’t often be found in a traditional church. Driscoll connects a student’s examination of scriptures with a critical observation of American culture. His insights are provocative and intriguing. They will challenge the assumptions of many traditional main-line Christians. Church leaders – both lay and clergy – will want to read this book to ponder Driscoll’s perspective on the future of ministry. Even as a denominational administrator, I find his comments exciting and stimulating. There is much to anticipate in Christian ministries in the future. It will not likely look much like it has in the past 50 years. Driscoll’s thoughts point to hopeful possibilities of what God may choose to do in our world.
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