“The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:8
Sometimes the pace of change in our world can take your breath away. As we approach Pentecost, we wanted to spend some time with the Holy Spirit, the future of the Church—universal, PC(USA) and 900 Jordan—and the subject of change.
It seems like everyone in the Church today is clamoring for change. Some want change that takes us back to 1960. Others want to see change around the edges: doing what we already do but doing it better. Some want radical change in the way we “do church.” Almost no one believes that maintaining the status quo is an option for the church.
The readings we have attached come from a variety of sources and perspectives. One looks at the church and sees that “Our system is perfectly designed to maintain the status quo.” Are there structural changes that need to be made to the church’s way of going about its calling? What might that mean for the way a session or church committee goes about its work? How do we create a space for the Holy Spirit to work in the church? A pdf of this article is at Structures or you can access it at http://pcusa-oga.typepad.com/mgbcomm/2011/05/from-the-the-mgb-commission-observation-deck-8.html
Brian McLaren challenges the church to think in terms of “refounding” instead of preserving, renewing or restoring. If we were to pursue that sort of change, what would it look like for our church? What would have to change? If change by its nature involves some loss, are we willing to choose change anyway? You can read more from Brian and McLaren and watch an interview with him at: http://www.pcusa.org/news/2010/12/10/brian-mclaren-looks-future/
If “refounding” is beyond our capacity for change, what innovations can we make in the way we carry out our calling? Does change require a change in our identity and understanding of our mission?
As we approach completion of the Fulfilling the Vision project, how will this essentially new facility affect our ministry? Will anything change upon completion of the project? If so, what should those changes look like?
Read the materials and reflect on the questions they raise for you and the church. Will the “Lord, the giver of life” yet again breathe life into the church as it did at Pentecost?
The Structure piece really resonates with me because I am a process-oriented pragmatist who believes in the power of the Holy Spirit.
The pragmatist in me values the structures that preserve order, that allow us to build logically on our foundations, that keep me feeling “safe”. But from what is it keeping me safe? The safe thing for the early church leaders to do would have been to retreat when they faced challenges. To circle the wagons, to only associate with those whom they knew. To remain locked inside a safe space. And this what the disciples did in the immediate post-resurrection period.
But then something changed, fear no longer gripped their hearts and they went boldly forth introducing the gospel to people near and far. People who were different- very different. The apostles were creative and innovative and bold. They were anything but decently and in order.
What made the difference? The power of the Holy Spirit. As much as we need the process and structure, we need the Holy Spirit more. We need trust that with the Spirit’s guidance we will have the courage to be bold. That we will find innovative ways of reaching the hurting and creative ways to be a healing presence.
It is a lot easier to say the words that the Spirit is the “giver of life” than it is to live out those words. The structures, even of they are dysfunctional, are safe and secure. We need to be willing to lose that feeling of security, our place in the community, maybe even some prestige. I don’t think we can do that without a lot help from the Spirit.