Trying to look on the sunny side

"My husband reads your blog, and he commented that you seem to have a lot of complaints about the Church," a friend told me recently.

A number of responses came to mind, mostly of the "Well, yeah" and "No duh" variety.

There are lot of voices offering criticism of the church around the blogosphere. A sizable percentage of these critics sing the laments that jilted lovers do. Their minor key songs are the kinds of songs sung by those who gave time and money and the best parts of themselves to a congregation, only to be neglected, used or abused in return. I would definitely put myself in this category. When I tell sad stories or ask questions about church, I am doing so because I want to use my voice to encourage others who've been hurt by the people who are meant to be your family in the best, healthiest sense of the word. I use my voice because there is nothing more affirming and empowering than discovering that you're not the only one.

That said, every once in a while it's good to tell a different kind of story about a church leader. I am still a part of the body of Christ, which means that either I'm completely nuts for sticking around after some of the horrors I've experienced in the Church - or I have learned that those people are not the sum and total of who the Bride is meant to be.

So with that, a good leader story. I first wrote about it in more detail here, but it is a story worth repeating. It is a beautiful picture of how a leader's response to a messy person can bring incredible healing. It remains one of the most transcendent moments I've ever had in a church.

I'd been, as they say, thrown under the bus several years earlier by a leader with a secret to protect. (The secret was that he was a porn addict and was thisclose to having an affair.) It was devastating at the time, but by this point, I figured I'd worked through the worst of it and I was now all right. Really. Fine, thanks.

I was at an organizational meeting in a new church in a new state years later when I saw a face, an image that transported me back in time to the point of impact. A PTSD microburst. I freaked out inside, but did my darndest to maintain a calm, rational exterior.

I nearly pulled it off, except for the fact that I'd begun shaking uncontrollably. I prayed that no one noticed, and tried to figure out how to excuse myself from this room of near-strangers so I could go to my car and cry. 

A leader at the church, Mike, noticed. He gently asked me if I was OK. I tried offering a brief explanation that would have allowed me to preserve a scrap of dignity, but I'm not sure I made any sense. My chattering teeth didn't help the effect.

Mike quietly directed the others in the room to gather around me, lay their hands on my shaking body, and pray. He'd been a grade school teacher for years, and he knew just what to do when someone got hurt at recess.

None of them knew what they were praying about for me. But the Holy Spirit knew, and he moved them to pray prayers of freedom and release that hit their mark. They could have branded me an emotionally-disturbed woman, and they'd have been right.

Instead, fueled by compassion and directed by Mike's shepherd leadership, they didn't label me with any other label - except that of a friend in need of prayer.

This is how a leader who is following Christ is supposed to respond to someone else's mess. In fact, this is how each one of us who has been filled with the Holy Spirit is invited to respond. Think Good Samaritan.

Mike did that night. And I am grateful. 

 

The electric fence

"I'm wondering if you and your husband have run into issues of sexual sin among any of the leaders in your congregation." My query paused the conversation while my friend reviewed her experiences in the last year or so since her husband had become an elder in a mid-sized, non-denominational congregation.

The fact that she had to pause and think about it answered my question.

"Well, there's a couple dealing with infidelity on the part of one of the spouses," she said at last.

"Are they in leadership roles?" I asked.

"Oh no," she said, a note of shock in her voice. "No problems at all like that. Why do you ask?"

I'd been reflecting on the devastation that had been wrought by the wandering desires of church leaders I've known over the years. Leaders' porn addictions, adulteries, emotional adulteries, more porn addictions, more adulteries and a few cases of fornication for good measure have pock-marked the narrow road I've walked during the last three decades.    

If a leader is not inclined to confess, then without a moment of hesitation, he or she will destroy anyone who gets too close to their secret. The love the ministry leader may profess for their congregation ends at the electrified fence they've built around their secret. The leader usually has no problem shoving the potential exposer into the fence and watching the person fry. "See? There's the problem in our congregation," the leader will say as he or she points to the now crispy-fried reputation of a brother or sister. And in my experience, they'll resort to this tactic again and again and again until they either get caught or collapse under the weight of their double life. 

Someone once told me I seemed to have trust issues with church leaders. (Ironically, I later discovered that this person was heavily involved in a cover-up of a church leader's emotional affair. But I digress.) When I recently shared some of our war stories with a new friend, I realized that either (a) my husband and I have extraordinarily terrible discernment when it comes to choosing churches or (b) the problems are here, there and everywhere, and when we've prayed "God, please use me", he will take us at our word and escort us right toward an electrified fence. 

The temptation to say, "Forget you" to the Church has been great at times - and there have been periods when simply walking in the door of a service and taking a seat in the back row has been all that I can do. Even then, when I was in non-involvement mode at a church, I once had a woman in leadership decide to befriend me because I seemed safe (because I was non-involved) and confess to me the affairs she and her husband had both had in recent years. Oy. 

I am certainly more guarded these days, but I believe that might be called "Wisdom". I also am learning to trust God, even when his people fail. I fail, and God trusts me to continue to carry his Spirit in spite of my own failures - and because of his bottomless love and mercy.

I also believe that the people I learn from are often not the ones wielding power in a church professing their desire to 'equip me for ministry', but the ones who probably aren't on the church org chart who have the time and openness to sit at a table across from me and share their lives. Our society provides us all with regular tutorials about the relationship of power to sexual appetite - Arnold Schwartzenegger and Anthony Weiner, most recently. Truth 101 here: Power in any sphere can be simultaneously a narcotic and an aphrodisiac, and yes, that combo, applied to the unhealed wounds of a church leader can out a dormant hidden self that will take down others to preserve its secrets. 

The note of shock in my friend's voice sounded a lot like "That could never happen here". That tone of pride was more alarming to me than her answer. Paul, writing to a congregation where sexual sin was center stage, coached them with these words of warning: "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!" (1 Cor. 10:12) 

My prayer for my friend is that she and her husband will indeed be careful - especially if they find themselves being escorted toward an electric fence. 

Have you ever been in a church impacted by the sexual sin of a leader? How did it affect you? 

Country music words quiz

I've avoided the genre like smallpox, but in recent years, a few crossover hits have captured my imagination. And that Mad Magazine coverboy, also known as American Idol winner Scotty McCreery, got me to thinkin' 'bout tryin' the Country Music for the first time. (!) I challenged myself to give country a chance for a month.

I'm almost done with my 30-day challenge period wherein I listen to pop-hit country US99 in the car when I drive. There are a few songs that I simply can not stomach as a newbie country music listener (like this one), but for the most part, I think I might be getting hooked, at least a little bit. I like the storytelling aspect of the music, and there are bonus points because I don't feel quite as slimy as I do when listening to certain autotuned pop stars who shall remain naLAmeDYleGAssGA.

I'm a word girl, so I have collected a vocabulary list from the songs I've heard in heavy rotation on the radio station. Country music fans, can you name the current song and artist where each of these words are found? 

1. Porch

2. Critter

3. Piece o' wire

4. Mama

5. Daddy

6. Beer

7. Whiskey

8. Tractor

9. Coon dog

10. Conway Twitty

*I know, I know. Some of these words are in thousands of country songs. Seriously. Beer? Whiskey?Just do your best with what's on the current charts

**And yes, some of these words come from the same song. 

***Yes, yes, I do find myself wondering what a nice Jewish suburban Chicago girl like me is doing listening to a song with the words "Coon dog" in it. Thanks for asking.

Spiritual narcissism

Yesterday while I was playing hooky, I headed to WI for a quick visit with Meg, my long-time prayer partner. We ended our day in the empty sanctuary of her Pewaukee church. It is a small modern space, but was sited onto the land with great respect to the old trees and plantings already residing on the land. Windows behind the altar bring breathtaking views of creation into the building all four seasons of the year. 

As Meg and I prayed, I could almost hear a sermon preached to me by the plants and trees in full bloom. Their early summer majesty whispered to me that they are helpless to grow themselves; sun, wind, soil, rain and time are given them by the One who hard-wired the DNA within each one's seed. Dr. Gerald May noted, "The gentlest form of spiritual narcissism is the idea that one can accomplish one's own spiritual growth."

Jesus told a story about the nature and purpose of spiritual growth. In my book Uprooted: Growing A Parable Life From The Inside Out, I spent a little time imagining Jesus' revolutionary idea that God alone causes growth to happen in our lives. Enjoy!

He also said, "This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come."    -Mark 4:26-29

    Levi groaned. The first rays of the sun slanted through the open doorway, and he rolled over, draping his arm across his eyes. Ah, for just a few more minutes of sleep.
    Miriam’s side of the bed was already cold. She was a good woman, that one, up before the dawn to begin preparing breakfast for the family.
    He let his arm drop, and pushed himself up to a sitting position. As his feet hit the floor, he uttered the day’s first prayer:  I give thanks before you, King, living and eternal, for you have returned within me my soul with compassion, abundant is Your faithfulness. Amen.
    He’d built his life using the pattern given him by his father, may he rest in peace, and from his grandfather before him. Levi’s family was comprised of an unbroken chain of rabbis, honorable men who’d taught others how to live every jot and tittle of the Torah.
    He lifted the tefillin, those small boxes containing portions of God’s Word, one for his head and one for his hand, and began wrapping the leather strapping to himself in the prescribed manner. Left hand first, Levi prayed: Blessed are you, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and has commanded us to put on tefillin. Amen. Up the arm, 7 times around, Levi pulled the straps snugly: Blessed is the Name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever. Amen. He affixed the other precious little box to his head, and continued, Blessed are you, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and has commanded us regarding the commandment of tefillin. Amen.
    He paused for a respectful moment, then repeated the statement that completed this part of the ritual. He’d said it by rote every day of his life since the day he became a man: I will betroth you to Me forever, and I will betroth you to Me with righteousness, justice, kindness, and mercy. I will betroth you to Me with faithfulness, and you shall know Me, God.
    He dropped his prayer shawl over his head like a small tent and raised his hands: Blessed are You, Lord, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us regarding the commandment of fringes. Amen. Those carefully knotted fringes were combination amulet and billboard, a reminder of God’s 613 rules at the foundation of Levi’s life.
    Levi completed his morning prayers, removed his tefillin, and went to join his wife and children for breakfast. He stopped to wash his hands: Blessed are You O Lord our God, King of the universe, Who has made us holy through His commandments, and has commanded us concerning washing hands. Amen. He then prayed a blessing on the warm flatbread (“Blessed are You, Eternal our God, Ruler of the Universe, who brings forth bread from the earth. Amen.”) and figs (“Blessed are You, Eternal our God, Ruler of the Universe, Creator of the fruit of the tree. Amen.”)
.     Each moment of Levi’s day was shaped as much by those rules as by the centuries of commentary about the specifics about how to best obey those rules. His life was a chain of days; the links forged of iron obedience.
    The latest debate among the men at his synagogue centered on how best to thank the Creator for two pieces of fruit when one piece was cut into pieces and the other was served whole. Give thanks for the whole piece, of course, Levi contended. But others felt that thanking God for the cut pieces was in order since those were the ones that were going to be eaten first. Some complained that they were splitting hairs with an axe, but Levi was convinced, as were his father and grandfather before him, that these questions were practically a matter of life or death.     
    Jesus’ full-house audience that day at beside the lake was peppered with many men like Levi, men who’d come to hear this rabbi from Nazareth. Most wondered aloud, “Can any good thing come from such a place?”  They’d heard about him, and were curious to hear this teacher’s opinion about how to best thank the Creator for cut fruit, the right length for the tassels on one’s prayer shawl, and how to measure their strides on the Sabbath so they didn’t inadvertently work by taking one step too many. As he seated himself along the lakeshore in a prime spot, Levi knew he’d best be attentive. Jesus’ words would be additional kindling for the fiery discussion at the synagogue that would follow His visit to their area.   
    Imagine Levi’s surprise when Jesus didn’t talk about the proper way to bless a bowl of cut figs. He told a cluster of stories instead, telling His hearers about an odd kingdom He claimed was God’s where people were themselves the fruit. Levi knew the power of a story to make a point; he used the technique himself when a particularly slow-witted member of his congregation didn’t understand him.
    Jesus’ stories were ridiculous…insulting even!  Levi was furious that Rabbi Jesus would tell the people a story that wasn’t even much of a story – it was simply a description of the life cycle of a seed. A seed!  What kind of a hoax was this?! How could a plant tell people more about God’s kingdom than a Law-loving man like Levi?   Levi considered himself a fair and open-minded man, but as he listened to Jesus, he absently fingered the tassels on his tallit and slammed his heart shut.
    Amen.

+ + + + + + +
 

    Jesus told those willing to hear Him that the process of a seed’s growth is a simile that can help us discover His kingdom here and now. A plot of ground, planted intentionally with seed, tells us exactly what we need to know about the way His kingdom works. There are many who believe they’re growing God’s kingdom by with beautifully-crafted religious technique. But all rules and methods can ever do is create a structure. We humans have the capability to build things, but are powerless to make growth happen.
    Jesus’ little story, found only in the gospel of Mark, carries a heaven-sized message that tells us that we are barren earth, impotent to generate life or produce fruit. God’s kingdom is contained wholly in the seed – His life, planted in each of us who follows Him. The whole aim of the seed’s life is to come to maturity and be ready for harvest by the One who planted it in the first place. This parable isn’t a biology lesson. It’s about the mystery of His life lived in us.
    And the world around us – every blade of grass, every shaft of wheat, every willow and thistle and palm is explaining the mystery to us.

Review: Story Engineering

Toward the end of his life, King Solomon famously noted, "Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body." (Ecc. 12:12) In our modern age, we are now up to the point where there are endless numbers of books about the writing of books. Some new classics about the art of writing, like Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird or Natalie Goldberg's Writing Down The Bones, are designed to inspire both beginning and veteran authors.

There are other books that function as "how to" texts for adult newbie writers. These study tools can be helpful for some, and wearying for others. There is no one-size-fits-all manual that will deliver everything that an aspiring author needs to craft a book. A person who wants to learn to tell a story will benefit from wading through a few "how to" manuals in order to glean the information that works for him or her.

Story Engineering: Mastering The Six Core Competencies of Successful Writing by Larry Brooks (Writers Digest Books, 2011) is a how-to manual for aspiring novelists. Brooks, a writing coach and the the author of five thrillers, approaches his subject matter with the precision of...well, a very chatty engineer. He insists that even those who sucessfully create their stories organically (like Stephen King, whose style Brooks refers to as "pantsing", as in, "writing by their seat of their pants") are bound by the rules of story engineering.   

The book explores the components used to build a story: concept, character, theme, structure, scene execution and voice. Brooks relies on popular recent blockbusters like Dan Brown's ubiquitous The DaVinci Code to provide examples of how these components *must* be fitted together to create a marketable final product. He insists that if someone follows the formula (while insisting that it is not a formula), the author will increase their chances of creating a book that will catch the eye of an acquisitions editor:

Without the right knowledge, without mastering a formidable list of basics that is rarely talked about coherently, most of us end up with a dream that never materializes...too often (authors) don't even recognize the pit they're in, so when the rejection slips arrive they don't have a clue as to why. 

I'll tell you why, and I haven't even read their manuscripts. They were rejected because one or more of the Six Core Competencies was executed at a level that failed to inspire the agent, editor, or producer to offer a contract....here's the good news: The knowledge of how to understand and apply the Six Core Competencies of successful storytelling is out there. In fact, it's right here in your hands.

I have no quibble with the basic content of the book. It is formula - but novice writers need a helpful introduction to the rules so they know how to obey and intentionally violate them in order for their stories to capture the attention of readers in our era of "making many (many, many, many) books". Though this is not the be-all, end-all of writing books, it will serve a purpose for some beginning writers of the left-brained variety who want to understand how to construct a page-turning story.

What I didn't like about Story Engineering was Brooks' habit of announcing and then announcing some more that he was about to make a Big Point. He devoted pages and pages of the book to hyping this principle or that one before he actually came out and just said it. It made me feel as though he was trying to sell me on the book even though I was already reading it, and I started resenting him for it about a third of the way through the book. If all of this point-padding were removed, the book would probably be about half its 288-page length - and it would have been a much more interesting and user-friendly read.  

*I received a Kindle version of this book to review from Thomas Nelson publishers.

Building a bridge from here to There - part 3

Transitions are the bridges from here to There in written and verbal communication. In part one of this three-part series, I offered some basic thoughts about how transitions serve as a sort of GPS, directing readers/listeners from point to point of an author or speaker's idea journey. In part two of the series, I showed what happens when transitions are ignored in one especially potent form of communication - a church service. I created a generic example pieced together from years of sitting through services where people in charge may have thought about the specific element for which they were responsible, but often didn't think about how or why to create bridges between these elements. (And in some cases, they didn't think through the "why" the element was there to begin with, which meant that they often missed the point and purpose of the element entirely. But that's another whole series of blog posts - or a book!)

If you've hung with me so far, then allow me to have a final look at this subject. I've re-imagined my imaginary church service, this time, with the kinds of bridges from here to There that are designed to help a group move through corporate worship together. 

As the doors to the sanctuary open, a single individual is playing worship music on a keyboard. The music has the effect of hallowing the space and time, so as the congregation enters the room, they are being cued to shift gears and come together for worship. Those involved in leading worship (musicians, preacher/teacher, sound team) were gathered for prayer "off stage" in order to prepare their hearts and be receptive to what the Spirit was saying to the church that morning.

The worship leader took the stage and read a passage of Scripture and prayed that God would help the congregation give themselves freely in worship, responding to the One who'd given himself to them first. 

Several songs grouped around the theme of the day's message are sung, punctuated once with a brief and appropriate prayer of thanksgiving from someone in the congregation in response to the words of the song. As the sung worship draws to a close, a worship team member reads the text of an ancient prayer that echoes the theme for the day's service. 

The person giving announcements takes the stage, and welcomes all assembled to the gathering. The announcements of upcoming activities are brief, simple and clear - framed in terms of who the church is as a worshiping community. The church has recently decided to do away with "passing the plate" due to the leaders' growing conviction that this Scripture applies to this practice coupled with the fact that many more members are giving using an online donation tool. The announcement-maker notes that there are offering boxes positioned near the back of the church. 

The preacher then takes the stage and prays for the congregation - that they will live lives that give freely to God and to others, and that his/her words will be used of God to equip each one to follow Him more faithfully. S/he reads the day's Bible text(s), then preaches a message that points people toward Jesus, and ends with some words designed to bridge from the text of the message to the next element of the service: communion. 

A member of the congregation comes and reads a brief devotional thought s/he's written about the day's text that contains a brief corporate prayer of confession of sin. The worship leader allows some time for silent reflection, before speaking words about God's grace and forgiveness over the people. S/he then reminds the congregation that God is inviting all of those who believe in Him to share in this meal together, and blesses those who are not yet believers, letting them know that they are free not to participate. As the worship team plays an instrumental piece of worship, the congregation is invited to come to one of the stations around the room that contains the elements, take them, and return to their seats.  As they do,  The worship leader reads 1 Cor. 11:23-26 and prays as the congregation takes the elements together. Two more songs of thanksgiving, then a congregation member comes to the front and reads a benediction over the congregation, blessing them as they head out into mission. 

If you compare the haphazard assemblage of elements I described in Part 2, you'll see some tweaks to some of those elements above. But if you look past the tweaks, you'll see that the basic structure is pretty much the same - but the bridges - the transitions - are much stronger. With intentionality about good transitions, there is less room for ham-handed transitions (like "Go team!") to do the heavy lifting of building a bridge from element to element.  

Because I've been involved in worship planning in a variety of different settings, and because I am a writer who is forced by my vocation to contemplate how to create fluid transitions in my work, I am willing to confess that perhaps I am extra-sensitive when I see them omitted or dismissed in corporate worship.

Or am I? If you've lived through a few church services like the one I described in Part 2, did the lack of intentionality about the transitions bother you? Why or why not?

  

Building a bridge from here to There - Part 2

My last post was a five-minute intro on the importance of transitions in communication. (Click here to read it.) I ended the post with a bit of a teaser when I mentioned that there is one group of communicators who don't always do much thinking about transitions.

I believe these people neglect transitions because they are often focused on specific chunks of communication. They aren't thinking of the big picture. And because of that, their audience is often left to do too much of the work of connecting those individual chunks.

Just who are these neglectful communicators?

The ones I am thinking of are some of the people who craft corporate worship services, particularly in "low church"/non-denominational congregations. Churches that use tried-and-true set liturgy may also struggle to flow from movement to movement in a service, but they have the benefit of following a script that's been tested by time. At least some of the bugs and hiccups of their church services have been worked out by their denomination's early adopters generations ago.

Let me give you an example of what it is like to be in a typical evangelical church service where it appears no one in charge has thought through transitions. (Please note that this is an amalgam of every bad service of which I've ever been a part, not a report on the worship service I attended this morning.) 

The worship team wanders onto the platform, and the sound guy runs up on stage and frantically switches out a mic at the last moment. As the band launches into the first song, the worship leader chirps, "Good morning!" A few in the congregation say, "Good morning!"  The worship leader isn't satisfied with this tepid response, so he says more loudly, "Good morning, church!" The congregation picks up the cue and respond, "Good morning!" The worship leader then launches into the first song. 


After the song finishes, he comments on the weather and the afternoon's big football game, and then tells the congregation, "Let's make sure if you cheer for the (insert team name here), you cheer even louder for our God this morning." The congregation claps for God. He proceeds to lead the congregation in two more songs. 


Another person takes the stage after the songs finish, and greets the congregation. She then launches into a series of announcements about upcoming church events and recruitment for VBS volunteers. The pastor takes the mic from her, asks the ushers to come forward to collect the morning's offering. As they do this, a soloist sings a song to the congregation. When he finishes, the congregation claps for the singer.


The pastor returns to the mic, opens his Bible, prays briefly and launches into his message. When he finishes, he prays again, and the worship team returns to the stage. After a song, the worship leader reminds the congregation that today is Communion Day, and notes that they'll be out of there in plenty of time for the Big Game. He flips open his Bible, reads 1 Cor. 11:23-26, and then instructs the ushers to pass the plates containing the elements. A couple of quick prayers over the elements, two more songs and it's over. The congregation knows that when the musicians put their instruments down, the service is over. The worship leader ends with the uplifting words, "Have a good week! Go (name the team)!" 

If you've ever attempted to participate in a service like this, you know that the potential for disconnect is ripe in both content and song selection. Often, the people planning a service (pastor and worship leader, at minimum) will do a little coordinating. "The text for my message is _____," the pastor will tell the worship leader. "The theme of the message will be ____."

The worship leader will use those cues to select some songs that sort of highlight that theme. (Or s/he will ignore the cue and choose songs s/he likes, thus creating dueling messages in a single service.)

A message with a few songs that kinda go with the message does not create a cohesive corporate worship service. 

An unhealthy focus on the horizontal aspects of congregational gathering (coaxing performance out of a congregation by cuing them to "cheer for God", too much chatter about sports teams) will smother worship. Too much vertical without including the congregation turns most of the congregation into spectators as well. Healthy congregational worship flows between the vertical and the horizontal:  some movements of a service are meant to connect us with one another (greetings, information about a community's life together), some are meant to be vertical (music, offering), and some parts of a service are both vertical and horizontal (communion, sermon/homily).  

Healthy services begin with leaders who are devoted to prayer and who understand deeply that their worship flows out being with God the other 167 hours of their week that they're not in front of a live mic. But they require more than a good relationship with God. Those leading public worship must serve God and people by embracing their sacred role as narrator. Each service tells a story, and anchors us afresh to the big Story of which we're a part.

And every good story is held together by its transitions. 

 

Transitions - segue ways, shifts, bridges - help a congregation follow the flow of a service. Thoughtful transitions are designed to take the stress off of the congregation members who will work on their own to form connections between two disparate pieces of a service - or check out if the whole event seems like a random collection of stuff that's somehow about God. 

Leaders who care about transitions communicate deep intentionality, and this applies to free-wheeling Charismatic services just as much as it does to the more predictable services led by those with degrees from Fundy Bible U. Someone caring about transitions frees a congregation to "go with the flow" - and that flow actually creates space inside people's heads and hearts for the Holy Spirit to speak.

One simple question needs to be applied to each element of a corporate service: How does this part connect to what came before it? 

The microphone holders need to think about those transitions with the same shepherding care that they use to approach their particular pieces of the service. 

In my next post, I'll take a look at how these bridges from here to There can change a service from a collection of disconnected elements into a story.

Building a bridge from here to There

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who lived in a village near the forest.  Whenever she went out, the little girl wore a red riding cloak, so everyone in the village called her Little Red Riding Hood. The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all extant land-living animal species, and the largest ruminant. 

Let that magical paragraph wash over you for a moment. 

What? You don't understand it? You don't see the obvious connection between Red Riding Hood and giraffes? 

Don't feel bad. I don't either. 

Without transitions, those ideas clash like the outfits of babushka'd old women often seen waiting at city bus stops. Writers know that transitions are web, glue and story-maker, even if they're writing a manual on how to operate a microwave. They are essential in helping us make connections between disparate ideas.

Let's do a little transition-making edit on that Red Riding Hood-Giraffe paragraph. (Warning: This is not great writing. It is just an example, and if you can create a better link between Red and the Giraffe, please leave it in the comments box. It'd be fun to see what you do with it.) Here's my attempt:  

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who lived in a village near the forest.  Whenever she went out, the little girl wore a red riding cloak, so everyone in the village called her Little Red Riding Hood. She'd spent the first part of her childhood living in Africa with her missionary parents, but after they returned to their home town, she adapted to her new life as a cloak-wearing villager. No one would have ever known that she missed Africa every waking moment of her days. After all, she'd had to leave her best friend Genette behind. Genette was a giraffe. For those who have never had the pleasure of having a friend like Genette, a bit of introduction to the species might be in order.  The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all extant land-living animal species, and the largest ruminant. 

Like I said, it may not be great writing, but at least it doesn't leave you scratching your red riding hood in confusion. I serve as an online tutor for a number of home school students, and understanding how to transition between ideas comes easily to some and has to be coached into the writing of others. 


Some of the basics of transitioning can be taught, but a lot of them are caught through exposure. Transitions are all around us - from those awkward segue-ways during local newscasts ("Speaking of hot, how about them Cubs?") to the fades and dissolves in every video, TV show and movie to the way most of us move from topic to topic in unstructured conversation.

And of course, we see transitions in what we read. When a reader is carried to new places by an author's words, transitions have created an invisible bridge from here to There.   

As a writer, I want to create bridges and carry readers to the places God has carried me. I don't ever want to leave a reader behind because my bridge is poorly constructed. 


There is one group of people who don't always do much thinking about communication transitions - to their detriment. Next time, I'll take a look at who these people are and what they can do to carry their audience with them.



 

 

Review: Love You More

Adoption has shaped my life in ways both beautiful and heartbreaking.

We were foster parents with Bethany Christian Services for two years. It was a high honor to be a part of the birth of a new family, and witness the courage of birth parents who'd chosen to release their babies into a future with this carefully-chosen family. Beautiful.

The heartbreaking part of adoption in my life comes in two different forms: My mom was adopted under a veil of secrecy by an alcoholic relative and his wife after her birth mom died. And during our own foster parenting years, our attempts to adopt an older child in the state system were unsuccessful.

The heartbreak only serves to underscore the eternal importance of adoption to me. Scripture highlights the stunning bravery of the adopted Esther, and refers to the people chosen to be brought into God's family with language that highlights the intimacy of the relationship. It reflects his heart and changes lives.

And the lives that get changed aren't just those of the adoptees. Author Jennifer Grant has penned a wonderfully honest memoir of her journey into adoption that shows how her life, her marriage, her family and her network of relationships have all been reshaped by the adoption of her fourth child, Mia.

Love You More: The Divine Surprise of Adopting My Daughter (Thomas Nelson, 2011) documents her journey from busy mother of three children born in the span of 3-1/2 years through the deep sense she and her husband had that their fourth child was waiting "out there" somewhere, through the adoption decathalon and into the always-shifting challenges and blessings of becoming and being a forever family:

     I was eager to prove wrong the people who expressed concern about my adopting her - those who told me horror stories about troubled adopted children, who wondered aloud whether she would be close to her siblings, who lamented that she wouldn't compare favorably with my older three. In my heart, I knew these cynics were wrong (and indeed time has shown that they were), but instead of releasing their negative comments, I set out - for a time - to prove them wrong. 
      Now that my little daughter is a happy, thriving member of the family, I find myself spending much more time just being with her. We look at the autumn leaves. We read books. We laugh together at her silly jokes. 
     I enjoy her presence, and my own. 
     And loving her makes me want to be present for others too...Adopting Mia...(has) torn off the veneer and helped me to live a little more honestly - which is to say, of course, that's it's made my life harder.

 Grant's insights are rich (the chapters in the section entitled "Waiting For Mia" would be super-helpful reading for anyone pondering what it's like to enter the adoption process), poignant (her story about feasting on blueberries with Mia a couple of days after she brought her home and realizing she had no idea what her little girl liked to eat put a lump in my throat) and honest (meshing lives is a messy process). Her faith shines through, but the book's focus isn't at all "Christian adoption" but "A Christian family who adopted a little girl from Guatemala". In other words, an occasionally heart-rending and wholly beautiful adoption story.

Though the 221-page book will appeal to adoptive families, I believe anyone who appreciates a finely-crafted memoir loaded will find Love You More well worth their time. Highly recommended.

When I was a kid, I used to tuck a small transistor radio under my pillow at night and listen to the clear-channel Top 40 broadcasts beamed across the Midwest from WLS-AM and WCFL-AM. I used to think it was the tunes that hooked me, but now I realize it was the DJ's talk that connected with me. It was as though they were escorting me into their oh-so-cool world - and I could go, even if I was an 11 year-old kid awake in a darkened bedroom in Des Plaines, IL.

The technology has changed from transistor to ipod, and now I get to choose the places I go when I listen to a podcast in the darkness. Here are some of my current favorites, in no particular order, from my podcast rotation:

Prairie Home Companion's News From Lake Woebegone

- Garrison Keillor's invented small-town MN world comes alive because of his wry and witty attention to detail about our human condition.

Christianity Today's Books & Culture podcast

- John Wilson is a great reviewer and thinker, and highlights the work of writers from a wide array of genres and themes.

Focus on the Family's The Boundless Show

- This one maybe shouldn't be considered a favorite because I often turn it off when the tone gets a little too smarmy or strident, but when it's good, the conversations about contemporary life from the twenty- and thirty-something crew can be fairly interesting.

Israel National Radio/various

- Arutz Sheva is the radio voice of the Modern Orthodox movement in Israel, and some of their shows are fascinating: Aliyah Revolution (issues related to immigration to Israel), Land Minds (profiling archaeological finds and controversies), Temple Talk (Third Temple guys discussing Torah readings, current events and more, through the filter of their dream of rebuilding the Temple).

Steve Brown Etc.

- I love Steve Brown, and he gets a lot of really interesting guests on his show (John Armstrong, Anne Jackson, Scot McKnight). I do not love his sniggering cohosts, which occasionally turn the show into a bad imitation of a small-town FM "Morning Zoo" program. Favorite with an asterisk, because I have to turn this one off from time to time as well.

This American Life

- Brilliant. Thought-provoking. Entertaining. There are not enough superlatives to describe just how wonderful this slice-of-life story-driven show can be. Highly recommended.

One Year Daily Audio Bible

Former music exec Brian Hardin has created a completely unique program. Each day, he reads from the Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs, mixing translations and bookending the reading with a personal note and prayer. Wonderful production values and Brian's warm voice and personality make this a must-listen for me.

Got any suggestions of podcasts I should add to the rotation? 

Born this way?

Sometimes a single idea will anchor itself in your frontal lobe and won't release itself from your brain until your thinking changes shape. A couple of weeks ago, I heard a thought that started to push on my thinking. Maybe you can help me understand why this man's comment has been haunting me.

First, some background: Our last day in Jerusalem, we attended a forum where young Messianic and Arab Christian leaders talked about the challenges and opportunities they were facing in Israel. Some issues were similar to the kinds of next-generation issues we talk about in the American church: community, fragmentation, the influence of media, healthy models of discipleship. Other issues were definitely rooted in the unique political and social divisions that go back to the earliest chapters of the book of Genesis. The conversation and interchange of ideas was fascinating.

One leader said the thing that I can't stop thinking about. He is a well-educated Russian Jewish believer who'd come to Israel during the great wave of post-USSR immigration during the 1990's. He noted wistfully, "In Russia, I was a Jew. In Israel, I am a Russian." 

In other words, he has lived as an outsider in two distinctly different cultures. (Throw his faith in Christ into the mix and he becomes even more marginalized in both of those cultures.) He has spent a lifetime dealing with issues of identity. To complicate matters, the Church hadn't necessarily been much of either a sanctuary or a place to help him embrace who he was and where he'd come from.

We quote Galatians 3:26-29 a little too glibly, I think. We use it to tell people that their identity, their tribe, doesn't matter when it comes to faith. That's true. Bloodlines can't save people - faith in the finished work of Christ does. But who we are and where we've come from matters, or the distinction wouldn't have been made in the book of Revelation:

"After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands." (Rev. 7:9)

The nations, tribes, peoples and language groups are distinctly different from one another - yet they all have the same Clothier, dressing them one and all in white robes. In their diversity, they are before Him, one people - His bride.

Focus too strongly on your tribal identity and you will plunge into racist thinking. Most of us understand that. But it is equally unrealistic to think that who we are and where we come from is irrelevant. We are, to drastically misapply a pop song lyric, born this way. Celebrating our tribal identity is a small but helpful short-term antidote to the effects of marginalization while we live on planet earth. And living into our identity as cherished sons or daughters of the King is the cure.

What do you think? Does "tribal identity" matter in the Church? Why or why not?

Shalom (as in "good bye") Israel

We arrived safe and sound in Round Lake after 11:00 p.m. last night, and jet lag is definitely taking hold of me this afternoon. However, I did want to give you a final look at our last couple of days in Israel. 

First, take a moment to pray for the continuing escalation of tensions across the Middle East. The entire region is undergoing a political and social shaking; the shaking has all kinds of spiritual implications. Sunday's nakba protests left at least 15 dead in Israel/Gaza, Lebanon and Syria. Of one thing I am certain: in the midst of the increasingly intense chaos, God is calling each one of his children in the region to himself. There is no other refuge, no hiding place, except him. 

On our final day in Israel, we awoke to a view of the Sea of Galilee, then headed to the spot on the Sea where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount. Three of us took turns reading the passage aloud as we stood in that place. The place is a magnet for pilgrims from all over the world. I found myself praying that Jesus' own people (and mine!) would be drawn to his words - they were there in droves on the day 2,000 years ago that he first gave this revolutionary teaching in the natural amphitheater along the shore. 

We then headed up the scary steep switchback road to the top of Mount Tabor, site of Deborah's victory before we ended our day in Tel Aviv. After dumping our bags at the hotel, we headed to the Mediterranean. Though it was a bit late (and a bit cool) for swimming, I did wade into the water before we ate dinner while watching the sun set. What a way to end the gift of an amazing two and a half weeks in Israel. 

I've now been there four times, and each time I leave the country, I leave a little more of my heart behind. 

And I think that's exactly how I'm meant to feel. 

Enjoy a few pix of our last couple of days there:

In Tiberias, along the Sea of Galilee, just before the sky opened up.

Blessed are they that don't bring their pets, wear shorts, yap, drink, shoot or smoke on the Mount of Beatitudes.

They do sell wine at the Mount of Beatitudes gift shop. But you have to drink it somewhere else.

Near the monastery atop Mt. Tabor. The site is considered one of the possible places where the Transfiguration took place.

At the top of Mt. Tabor, with a view of a village below. Yes, those tiny little boxes are houses. Did I mention I don't like heights?

One more wee update

Woke up this morning to the sound of pigeons discussing the rain. I saw the Sea of Galilee (also known as Lake Kinnaret) out of our hotel window. It was a pretty amazing way to start the day. 

Finished up the week in Jerusalem. I have limited internet access for the next few days, but did want to give you a quick final update. Here are some headlines:

- Bill's meetings with the Caspari board went well. They've launched a teaching/social ministry to believing singles; and are continuing to offer congregations leadership training and Shabbat school teacher training. There are plans in the works for some very cool publishing projects as well as the lecture series that Caspari excels at producing. 

- While I was cataloging 20 year old journals into the new library system in Caspari's theological library, I "just so happened" to open one and glance through it - and to my surprise, I found an article written by the husband of a friend I was scheduled to meet just a few minutes later. I made a copy and handed it to her. She couldn't believe it - and neither could I! It was one of those delightful God moments. The chances of me being in Israel to discover a long-lost article written more than two decades ago just before I was to see a friend here have to be pretty darn infintesimal. 

- The final day we were at Caspari, the team put together a forum allowing younger Messianic and Arab believers to talk about the challenges and opportunities the body faces in the country. I hope to have more to say about this in a later blog post. Suffice it to say, it was a rich day, and there were probably 70-90 people in attendance. 

We'll be in Tiberias for the next day or so, then head to Tel Aviv. We fly back to Chicago on Monday. 

Growing things love Israeli sunshine.

Proving support to an ancient olive tree.

Holding hands.

Just some of the treasure trove of journals in the Caspari archives.

Friday seminar at Caspari

Visiting a site in Jezreel (Yisreel) with the archaeologist who led the dig here.