#8 Just because a lot of people are coming doesn't mean you're doing something right.

The very first time I met a certain pastor he said to me, "I think the Church Growth Model and the Prosperity Gospel are really the same thing."  At the time I totally shrugged it off, and yes I'm pretty sure he capitalized those terms when he talked. It left me wondering, "What the hell was that?"

Usually people don't start first time conversation by linking dangerous theological concepts with a certain model of the church.  It was really completely outside the social norms that should have dictated the conversation.  It went from, Hi, I'm Mark and I'm new youth pastor in town to his assertion.  Now that it has been nearly three years since that conversation I can honestly say that it was one of my more memorable "nice to meet you" conversations I have ever had.

I have thought about what he said, which by the way does have some merit.  There have been times that I have looked at an organization like a church and said they must be doing something right because they have a lot of people supporting it.  Is that true?  Is the number of people a direct correlation to the rightness of the program?

Let's follow that logic out a little shall we.  Let's say that an organization is gaining a lot of followers.  This organization has over the course of just a few years built up a following of several hundred thousand people. This is a pretty big organization.  Now, let's say that the reason this organization is growing is because it is placing irrational amount of blame on one ethnic group for the struggles that are going on in the world, and promises to make the world a better place through relocating this group and stripping them of power and wealth.  Is this organization doing the right thing?  Most would say no, yet they are getting a large following, therefore, just because a lot of people are supporting something doesn't make it right.

My assertion is that just because a lot of people coming doesn't mean you are doing something right.  It means you are doing something popular.  It means you are marketing well.  But it doesn't mean that theologically or ethically you are doing the right thing.  This is the basic link my awkward conversationalist was making.  Church Growth is about getting lots of people and it follows that if you are faithful to God then everyone will flock to your church, which is in fact prosperity gospel.  Maybe if we follow the line of the prophets, we are following God when the majority of the people in the world are ignoring you.

Therefore, it is not that you're doing something right if you have a lot of people attending, but it is not that you are doing something wrong either.  High church attendance means you have lots of people interested in what you are doing.  It could be right or it could be wrong.  Growth doesn't mean you're right theologically or ethically it just means there are a lot of people checking out what you're doing. Let's not read too much into numbers, please.

#7 I feel like I know Portland thanks to the show Portlandia.

We don't have a TV anymore, but we do have a lap top computer that Netflix streams TV shows and movies to.  It's pretty awesome.  But it means that I am always at least one season behind on every TV show, which I have to just live with.

Because of Netflix though I have been exposed to shows that I probably would have never watched without their recommendation.  Portlandia is one of those shows.  So I really like the first two seasons, and because of this show I'm pretty sure I can count Portland as a place that I have visited.  I've never physically been there, but I think the show has shown me exactly what it is about and, therefore Portland has been checked off of my bucket list.

I would like to conclude this post by saying that this has been, indeed, my most meaningless assertion.  I'm not sure I can top this, but stay tuned and I will try.

P.S. I also have checked Gotham City off of my list because of the new Batman movies.  There's nothing wrong with living life vicariously through my lap top computer, right?

#6 I like to read about the Bible more than I like to read the bible.

I have found as I try to prepare for lessons for my youth group that I don't really enjoy reading the Bible itself.  I can open the Bible up and decide that I'm going to read Romans or something, and I absolutely can read it.  The problem is I don't really care that much about it when I just start reading it to read it.  The text means very little and I get a little caught up in the rhetoric and lost in the words and miss most of the meaning.  Then I get a little bored.

Rather if you give me a book that is a commentary on Romans, I will eat that up.  I love reading about the historical social world of the original writers.  I love read about what we know of Paul and what letters are actually his and which might not be.  I love the read about the ideas people have about how Paul's mission actually may have happened.  Or how in the letters Paul seems to have done things differently than how Acts portrays them.  I like to know what words and sentences could be translated differently with the chance that they are actually a veiled slam on the Roman Empire.  I like reading about Jewish revolts and the destruction of the Temple and disputes on when these books may have been written and disputes on authorship of these books of the Bible.

The story underneath the surface of the Bible that scholars have dedicated their lives to discern is way more fascinating to me than the actual texts.  But once I learn more about the background of the text it changes the way I may understand parts of the Bible.  Meaning changes and it becomes more interesting.  Trying to figure out the motivation behind the letters Paul wrote changes the feel of the letter, which in turn makes me think about it differently.  Maybe he wasn't writing to us today, but we can still learn from it.

In closing, I don't really like to read the Bible, but I love to read things about the Bible.  Reading about the Bible is way more interesting to me.  And maybe in the long run it makes the Bible come to life a little more and speak to me differently.  Bible reading plans for me suck, but reading plans that include books about the Bible sounds way more interesting.

Is anyone else like me?  What's your favorite book about the Bible?  What's your favorite book of the Bible?  Why?

Does anyone really comment?

Assertion #5:New Year's Resolutions make me feel bad about myself.

It's the start of another year.  Somehow we made it through another one despite the threat of certain doom from various contemporary and ancient sources.  And although I'm thankful to be alive at the end of this tumultuous year, there is one thing I hate about the new year.  A new year always makes me feel bad about myself.

 A new year means a time of reflection and evaluation, then setting the dreaded New Year's Resolution.  I don't know how you are, but I am really hard on myself.  When asked, I struggle to come up with strengths but I'm ready to tell you all my weaknesses.  It is a problem I have always had, and as a kid it meant at certain things I tried harder.  Like basketball, I was a short kid who was told that I probably shouldn't go out for the team next year.  And with true Michael Jordan flair (sometimes I overstate things) I came back the next year as the starting point guard of an undefeated team.  Basketball became my obsession because I was told I was bad at it.  I knew my weaknesses on the court and always did my best to work on them.  That didn't really get me anywhere, but it is a way my personality flaw worked to my advantage.  (Some would say that was more of a pride/proving people wrong issue, but whatever)

So as I look at myself in the mirror and reflect on what could change in my life, I always dwell on the negative.  Then, my self-esteem goes down.  Because over time, my determination and resolve have gotten weaker while self nit-picking has gotten stronger.  I've nearly defeated myself.  Then, I just start to feel bad about myself, and this whole New Year's thing starts to smell like my childhood home on liver and onion day, absolutely gag-worthy! (Sorry, Mom.)

So this year, while I will be trying to work to improve on some things, I am going to start thinking more about my strengths.  I've beaten myself up for my weaknesses enough.  It is time to concentrate on what I do well, and reflect on those things, so that while I'll occasionally give in to dwelling on my weaknesses, I won't forget that I'm actually do some things quite well.  This is the year that I will focus on the positive in my life instead of worrying about the negative.

What are your resolutions or goals for this coming year?  Upon what are you going to improve this year?  Of what are going to rid?  (I'm working on the don't-end-sentences-with-a-preposition syndrome this year, but it makes questions seem awkward.)