A Call from Mom's Sister

My mom's second youngest, of six, sisters, Lottie, called us yesterday. (Mom was one of seven girls.) These women had very traumatic childhoods and the five youngest remained close and fiercely mutually protective to the end. Only two survive.

As mom's health declined, Lottie asserted herself as a self-imagined protector of mom's wellbeing.

By that time, mom was physically frail and her Alzheimer's was advancing rapidly.

But, the sisters, who only saw her occasionally, couldn't appreciate mom's true condition. Lottie, especially, concluded that we were neglecting mom, so she and the others attempted to give mom the treatment they thought mom deserved.

Twice that we know of, they took mom out of the home...against home rules...and took her on field trips. Technically, they kidnapped mom.

They were certain that what they were doing was good for mom, but, in fact, it took mom days...weeks, once...to recover mentally and physically.

Several times, Lottie called us harassing for our ill treatment of mom.

It was very disconcerting.

Lottie is well into her 70s and, near the end of mom's life, Lottie had some serious physical setbacks and backed off.

I was concerned that the rift in our relationship would never be repaired.

So, yesterday she called us and we chatted for a long time. It was very amicable. We exchanged "war stories" about mom near the end.

It turns out that, eventually, Lottie saw how poorly mom was doing and, especially, how severe the Alzheimer's was. (Until the very end, if you only saw mom occasionally you couldn't tell how affected mom's mind truly was.)

It seems that Lottie came to appreciate that we were doing the best we could for her. And, it seems, all is forgiven.

Nice to know.

I'm feeling a strong sense of relief now.

I thought that there would never be peace between Lottie and us. At least, the hostilities are over.

Netflix Suggestions?

Last fall we changed cell phone service providers.

As a part of the package, two years of Netflix was provided.

I'm not big into watching TV. We don't have cable or satellite. For years, we've only watched DVDs, now Blu-rays of British TV shows.

But, we're still pretty seriously locked down here in our Residential Living apartment at the home and I've been checking out what Netflix has to offer.

I found a very little of the British mysteries we enjoy and I'm slogging through an American show starring the guy who played Jesus in The Passion of the Christ. It's okay as far as I am concerned.

So, knowing what you know about me, any suggestions?

On or off the blog.

"A lot of our churches no longer have faith in the Scriptures."

I'm a big fan of Nick and Dan's Bible Study podcast. 

Moments ago, I finished listening to this week's edition. The description of this one says that the discussion is "wide ranging," and it is. Much of this one touched on the way churches in America engage the secular world and behave politically.

This one seemed to be more of a stream of consciousness than it was devoted to a single theme followed by both guys.

That's fine. It's real.

One thing that is unusual in today's CGGC, is that when I listen to these guys, passion oozes from them.

Their passion connects me to our early Church of God days, the days when we were swimming in God's blessing.

Mostly in the CGGC today, we're temperate, tepid, thoughtful, cautious and careful, and very well spoken. Mostly, we're philosophers, theoreticians...the people who speak to us, and for us anyway.

The Nick and Dan podcast is the one connection I have to our body today where I can know, and not doubt, that we still have people who possess fire!

I praise God for these guys and what they actually do.

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I sent a note to Dan when I finished the podcast and said, among other things, that Nick produced the best soundbite in the brief history of the podcast. That sound bite is the title of this post.

"A lot of our churches no longer have faith in the Scriptures." I'm sure Nick said exactly that. I relistened to be certain that I got it exactly right.

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I have a few thoughts about what Nick said.

First, when he said it, he was merely stating an opinion, based on his considerable experience in the ERC. He wasn't preaching. He wasn't complaining. He wasn't haranging like I would. He was simply describing fact.

Second, Nick was being honest. Understand, I don't mean to suggest that other holders of institutional authority in the CGGC in recent years have been/are dis-honest. What I'll say is that, in the CGGC culture, it's become the norm to avoid the truth. Most of the holders of institutional authority in the CGGC don't talk about the past, or the present, they envision a fuzzy, better future...which never becomes reality.

Third, in my opinion, Nick was accurately describing reality. For many generations, our body has been in the midst of spiritual decay and numerical decline. The Lord loves to bless His people, yet the Lord of all authority and power and grace and mercy and blessing isn't blessing the CGGC. He once blessed us. He has stopped blessing us. Why? Nick has described one foundational reason. We no longer have faith in the Scriptures.

Fourth, Nick's way of knowing that our churches no longer have faith in the Scriptures is, in his own words, "...if you have faith in the Scriptures, you're going to act the way they tell you to."

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What you do is what's important.

What you do is the fruit of what you believe. It's what you do, the fruit of your faith, that will determine your eternal destiny. (Mt. 25:31-46)

Thank God for Nick DiFrancesco. He's connecting faith and action in the ERC and CGGC.

Thank God Nick has the courage to say, on the level of our churches, we are not doing what people who have faith in the Scriptures do.

In my  opinion, we have two serious problems with doing.

One of the truths about our body is that, in our churches, everyone does what is right in their own eyes.

Another truth about doing in the CGGC is our "Talk-ism." Many of the high holders of institutional authority in the CGGC talk righteousness and obedience and love and justice and mercy, and they talk it poignantly and powerfully, but they don't walk their talk.

In our early Church of God days, we once had genuine unity, to the degree humans can have unity in this life, because we had faith in the Scriptures and we submitted ourselves to lordship of Jesus and to the authority of His Word, and we submitted to one another out of reverence for Christ...to the point that we did what we believe.

Back in the day, we were unified in deed, not only word.

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Finally, some questions. What does the reality that our churches no longer have faith in the Scriptures say about:

- our pastors, and
- our holders of institutional authority?
- our way of educating, mentoring, discipling our people?

The people of our churches were, at one time, burning with white-hot fire for the Word, and for Jesus.

The people of our churches got from where they once were to where they are now somehow.

It seems reasonable to me to suspect that our churches no longer have faith in the Scriptures and they no longer act in the way the Scriptures tell us to act from the top down: Our pastors and the people in authority in our Conferences and our educational institutions no longer have faith in the Scriptures.

Truly, how can there be any other reason?

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One other note. In chatting this through, it was suggested that most of you probably think that you do have faith in the Scriptures and that you are doing what they say...and, you also think that it's the others in the body who are the problem.

From my 40,000 foot view. You're probably wrong.

In the CGGC, many see the problem. Few think that they are the problem.

Be honest about your contribution to the problem.

"A lot of our churches no longer have faith in the Scriptures."

We must repent. Can I hear an, "Amen!" Can we see change?

How Hard would it be for Lance to Empower "Disturbers?"

I got an off the blog response to the Disturbers/Comforters post which seemed to hint that knowing how best to do these things is a problem.

In this case, though, I can't see that the first steps in walking Lance's talk can be so hard.

Lance touts the truth that being disturbed can end in good things and he quotes Catherine Booth who, along with her husband, William, founded the Salvation Army, and noted, "To better the future we must disturb the present."

Honestly, I can't see how difficult a first baby step in doing this might be.

On the surface, the CGGC is swimming in a sea of mutual affirmation. There would appear to be amazing oneness of mind among us. The old song, "Home, Home on the Range," seems to describe us.

"Never," in the CGGC, "is heard a discouraging word."

Sadly, though, metaphorically speaking, our skies are very cloudy.

While we're, on the surface, at least, unified with each other, we're not one with the Lord.

The Lord loves to pour out blessing on His people. Yet, in spite of our best efforts, we are in the midst of generations of spiritual decay and numerical decline. The Lord of all authority and power and grace and mercy and blessing is not blessing us.

Lance knows that being disturbed can be a good thing. Good for Lance. I'm certain that many in the CGGC don't know even that.

But, still, there's no disturbing happening here...

...apart, of course, from the disturbing that the high holders of institutional authority in the CGGC can't silence...

...that is the Lord's disturbing, as He continues not to bless us and to afflict us with these generations of spiritual decay and numerical decline.

Lance could, very easily, take a baby step in introducing disturbing to our culture.

We have people, people who love the Lord, to whom the Lord has given an alternate vision for our body.

All of those people I know have been pushed to the fringes of the body because of their negativity, presumably, but some are still there.

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Here's a word of practical advice to the people who regard themselves as human leaders in this increasingly small part of God's Kingdom.

1. Reach out to some of the disturbers who are still in the body, out there on the fringes.

2. Let them know that you agree with Lance about disturbing.

3. Invite them into the CGGC mainstream.

4. Assure them that you now understand that their love for the Lord is real.

5. Convince them that you believe that their voice will be heard.

6. Empower them to speak.

7. Treat their disturbing presence as an important part of the CGGC conversation.

8. Listen carefully to them.

9. Practice prayerfully their vision.

10. Understand, that, in doing so, you may be allowing the Lord to speak.

Truly, we can hardly do worse than we are doing now.

We must open ourselves up to being disturbed.

We must repent.

Lance's eNews: Disturbers Verus Comforters

Gang,

I've been holding on to this one for a few days. It's an old theme for me, but it's come up again, so, it's worth addressing again, I suppose.

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I didn't see a new eNews for this week and that's okay. I'm still fully engaged with the last one.

It's entitled, Are You Disbursed?

Summarizing:

Lance notes that these are disturbing times. COVID-19 has disturbed and disrupted our lives.

Yet, Lance's notes that being disturbed is not entirely a bad thing. In fact, disturbances can serve a positive purpose.

Lance points to the Word to prove the value of disturbance.

To reach the Promised Land, Israel needed to have its present disturbed by an extended journey in the wilderness.

Lance notes notes that Jesus was disturbing to His culture.

Consider how disturbing it was to His religious culture when Jesus flipped over tables in the temple and drove people out. As He did that, says Lance, Jesus quoted two Old Testament verses showing that He was disturbing "temple Judaism" and its false spirituality.

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And, of course, Lance is right.

Honestly it still stuns me how much Lance and I think the same things. No doubt, in our thought lives, I agree with Lance more than most of you do.

So, allow me to agree with Lance, and extend his argument.

Jesus praised and promoted disturbance.

Think of the so-called Beatitudes. They are not centered in the calm and the comfortable. Jesus connects disturbance in our lives with the ability to live righteously.

"Blessed are the poor in spirit... Blessed are those who mourn...Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness..."

Think of His wonderful invitation to the disturbed:

"Come to me all you who are weary and burdened..."

Think of Paul explaining the connection between disturbance and repentance and, ultimately, salvation.

"For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret..."

Jesus, and His disciples as well, didn't merely promote disturbance theoretically and philosophically. All four Gospels tell the story of Jesus violently and forcefully clearing the temple.

Jesus was far more than a theoretical advocate of disturbance.

Jesus was Himself a disturber.

Think of His frequent anger at the Scribes and Pharisees, on which He acted.

Think of His bold confrontation even of His followers. He rebuked Peter saying, "Get behind me satan," and of His forceful confrontation of James and John when they asked to be placed at His right and left hand when He came into His kingdom.

More than that,...

...think of the disturber Jesus made of John in Revelation 2 and 3 when Jesus dictated letters to be sent to churches in Asia. John wrote:

"If you do not repent I will come to you and remove your lamp stand from its place."

Of some in one church, Jesus turns John into a disturber who threatens, "...I will come to you and fight against them..."

"Because you are lukewarm, I am about to spit you out of my mouth."

Jesus didn't merely talk disturbance, He walked it. Jesus didn't just teach disturbance, He turned some of His followers into disturbers. 

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Lance talks the importance of disciples today being disturbers in the eNews.

Lance quotes Catherine Booth, co-founder  of the Salvation Army saying,

"To better the future we must disturb the present." 

Lance says Booth's statement "resonated deeply" with him.

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Yet, in following Jesus, the time comes when talk must produce fruit in walk.

In the Church of God movement days, we were a community of disturbers.

In fact, according to John Winebrenner on the day the Church of God formed, the first "counsel and work" of the body was "the conversion of sinners."

How disturbing to people who aren't following Jesus!

In the CGGC today, imagine having, as a primary focus, the act of approaching people who don't follow Jesus, calling them "sinners," and attempting to bring about their "conversion."

In the day, we valued disturbance in theory and we also walked that talk. The Church of God was a community of disturbers...

...as were early disciples who were accused of "causing trouble all over the world..." (Acts 17:6)

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My experience, in the CGGC today, is that we resist and quench the Spirit when the He blesses us with disturbers.

My experience, in the CGGC today, is that disturbers are not welcomed nor accepted nor mutually submitted to, nor empowered.

My experience, in the CGGC, is that disturbers are tolerated initially in the hope that they'll stop disturbing but, if they don't, they are shown the door in one way or another.

Ask yourself. How many remaining in the CGGC would say, in the Name of Jesus, "I will come to you and fight against them..."

Ask yourself, in the Church of God days, if our people would hesitate to speak that message if they believed that it was from the Lord?!

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I praise Lance because he can talk about the need for being disturbed,...most in the CGGC today can't and won't...

...but, as a body, we've forgotten how to put disturbance into action. In fact, we trash disturbers, and have for a looong time.

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The truth about the CGGC is that we are in the midst of generations of spiritual decay and numerical decline. The truth is that the Lord of all authority and power and grace and mercy and blessing isn't blessing us.

In fact, it's worth asking: Does the "I will come to them and fight against them" threat actually apply to us today?

We need to allow ourselves to be disturbed.

We need to welcome and accept and mutually submit to, empower and heed disturbers. That was once our way...in the days that the Lord of all authority and power and grace and mercy and blessing, blessed us.

But, these days, we only welcome comforters.

Truly, comforters have their place. But, it's  never been a prominent place. It's a secondary place.

We must walk Lance's talk. We must allow for the Spirit to, as Catherine Booth said, better the future because we disturb the present.

We must stop with the comforting already!

We must value being disturbed. We must deny ourselves and welcome  and empower disturbers.

We must repent.

PTS Doldrums?

It's been seven days since my last post.

As Jackson Brown sang, I feel a tad like I'm "Runnin' on Empty." (Ear worms are no extra charge here.)

It's been a tough four months. Evie had her ruptured colon, emergency surgery, peritonitis events in the middle of March during which she told me that she was about to stop trying to fight for recovery.

Then mom tested positive for COVID-19 and died slowly and, from what we can tell, agonizingly, though none of us were able to visit her for the last two months.

Mom died May 4.

And, most recently, Evie had the double surgery, which she really wanted to have, and which two surgeons were willing to perform, but was not absolutely necessary.

Evie was fatigued and weak before the surgery. She survived it, obviously, but she continues to be fatigued and weak. She's alive, and looks very good most days, but the road back to normal is going to be a long one.

These days, we're working on mom's estate. Mom had a very good attorney who specializes in Elder Law, and that's a good thing. Mom didn't have a large estate by the end. Most of the money went to the home, and we have no complaints. Except for allowing her to be infected by COVID...early on, when no one really knew what we were dealing with, she received wonderful care for many years...and was treated with compassion to the end.

It's been, as I said, a tough four months.

This has been a little too much for me. I'm deep down tired, in every way.

I recall that Paul said, in 2 Corinthians, in the face of much more adversity than I am facing, "...when I am weak, then I am strong."

And, I lean on that truth. Any strength I'll have in the near future will be His. In a way, I'm thankful for the reminder that He'll do it when I can't...if I trust and, well, obey.

Still, for the moment, I'm not finding the joy in Him that levels me out emotionally and spiritually.

I'm normally able to look at CGGC people walking the same path they've been on for 90ish years and see it with God's mercy, grace and forgiveness in mind,...but not now.

I'm normally able to look at the folly of the high holders of institutional authority in terms of the blessing that would be ours if we walk in the Spirit and walk our talk that the Bible is "our only rule of faith and practice." When I can keep His mercy, grace and forgiveness in mind, I'm able to see the potential for a bright future and say, sincerely, and with integrity,

...we must repent. 

At the moment, the tank's so empty that I can't say those three words with integrity.

I can quote, "I am about to spit you out of my mouth." (Rev. 3:16)  Sometimes, I want to.

But, I don't want to believe that's true. I don't believe it's true.

Hopefully, as I surrender my weakness to Him, I'll find His strength.

And, honestly, there's a (small) part of me that is happy for this dryness...this trial.

I see Evie smile and hear her laugh every day, even if my smiles and my laughter come rarely.

I know I have much to thank Him for.

Repentance...From What?

Here's how Lance ended his last eNews, with emphasis added by me.

"Let’s not just move on without making changes. Let’s not just go back to normal. Let’s respond to what the Lord is doing in our midst right now with repentance and belief."

Lance is referring, of course, to the death of George Floyd and the attention it focused on racial inequality in America. Lance laments the pressure of the news cycle, which is now veering back to reports on COVID-19 and, therefore, away from a spiritually crucial issue.

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It is absolutely amazing to me, how much Lance and I believe the same things.

One of my Characteristics of the CGGC Brand is, Fadism, i.e., our body's inability to be purpose driven but, instead, to focus, from moment to moment, on what's trendy.

As far as Lance's own conviction that concern about racial inequality is a good thing, Lance agrees with me...again...that the normal thing will be for us to latch on to whatever is of the moment...or, on the next fad.

Then, as I quoted, at the very end of the article, Lance agrees with me again: The ultimate solution to our problem is repentance.

My question?: Repent of what?!!!!

Lance is not specific. He never is. Honestly, he can't be.

We know that Lance believes in Ephesians 4:13, that "until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God...," Jesus will continue to give some to be apostles, others to be prophets, others to be evangelists and others to be shepherds and teachers. (4:11)

Just where Lance sees himself in this gift bag he's never said, but it's clear that Lance is not a prophet. He doesn't produce the fruit of being a prophet.

One prominent role of the prophet is to deal, on behalf of the people of the Kingdom, with repentance.

Prophets call for repentance, and,
Prophets define the issues of repentance.

Everyone who reads the New Testament knows about the importance of repentance.

But, repent of what! How?

What, specifically, from one moment to the next, should we think about differently?

Lance doesn't say. He, by the grace of God, can't know. The Lord has not wired Lance to know.

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In the Kingdom of God, Jesus gives to His disciples, prophets to serve the body, and to be followed by the body, on issues of repentance.

Nowhere, anywhere in Scripture, has repentance been accomplished through the institution, not Old Testament kings, not Old or New Testament priests, not Sadduccees, not scribes, not Pharisees.

In the Kingdom, Jesus gave some to be apostles, others to be prophets, others to be evangelists and others to be shepherds and teachers...

...and it is the prophets to whom He gives the task and privilege of calling for repentance...

...of knowing and defining from what the people of the Kingdom must repent.

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Much of the Western organized and institutionalized church is in the midst of generations of a fall from grace characterized by spiritual decay and numerical decline because the Lord of all authority and power and grace and mercy and blessing has stopped blessing.

It's long since time for the church to repent.

By the Lord's design, it's time for prophets to be permitted to shine.

Here are four things the people of the Kingdom must do...soon:

1. Recognize prophets. 
2. Empower prophets to do what the Holy Spirit tells the prophets to do. 
3. Mutually submit to the message of the prophets.
4. Follow the prophets. 

I can see signs of people of the institutional church recognizing prophets but I still don't see fruit of prophets being empowered, submitted to, and followed.

We will go nowhere in the Lord's blessing until those things happen.

Repent?

Repent of what?!!!!

We must repent about repenting.

We won't "reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ" until we do.

A Blast from the Past: Lance's Second eNews Article

Friends,

Lance's first eNews turned out to be a commentary and response to the Supreme Court's then recent decision to legalize same sex marriage.

This second article serves as Lance's introduction of himself as, as the CGGC Constitution defines his role, our CEO.

In the article, Lance cites statistics that demonstrate unquestionably that, at the time he became the CGGC E.D., our American body was in the midst of decay and decline.

As Lance suggested then, "we need to come to grips with our present reality."

In my opinion, Lance's description of the state of the CGGC five years ago is insightful and honest and bold.

Lance concludes by asking some progressive  church-focused questions. How different are our answers today than they were five years ago?

(Please excuse my ineptitude in copying and pasting. For some reason, some of the print appears in a sort of a chartreuse color and I can't get rid of it.)

ts

I went to the doctor earlier this week for a routine check-up. These experiences are always humbling for a variety of reasons. I live in a pretty consistent mental state with the sincere belief that I’m generally in good health: I have been known to exercise, I can identify others who need to lose more weight than I do, and I have occasionally enjoyed a salad or some other healthy option for a meal. While sincere in my belief that I am one small step away from becoming a certified health nut, the numbers at the doctor’s office typically tell another story (don’t worry – it doesn’t look like I’m on death’s doorstep, but I do have some work to do). Every four to six months I get a humbling dose of reality – I’m not nearly as healthy as I’d like to believe (and back to the elliptical machine I must go).

A vital part of moving forward with any sense of vision for the future is simply coming to grips with our present reality. I’m not inclined to make many changes if I think that things are really just fine. Let’s be honest: if our local congregation is making budget and attendance is holding its own, we can be lulled into the feeling that things are generally okay. At times we may be inclined to ignore the numbers and the trends that they reveal because it’s easier to live in a false sense of security or success.

So, what’s our present reality in the CGGC?

We’re in a culture where most of the trends are moving the wrong direction. Loyalty for loyalty’s sake is down, the value of denominational ties are down, and faithful/committed church attendance now means twice a month. Add to this the rise of the “nones” (the non-affiliated) and the fact that Millennials make up the largest segment of the “nones,” it’s a much tougher landscape than we’re accustomed to.

Some of the numbers specific to the CGGC are pretty troubling as well.

In the U.S. we’re in decline:

Over a 10-year period (2004-2013) 65% of our churches were in decline/stagnation in worship attendance. If you look at the most recent 4-year period (2010-2013), 80% of our churches were in decline/stagnation in worship attendance.

Nearly one-third of our churches haven’t reported a conversion in the three most recent years (2013, 2012, and 2011).

We need to come to grips with our present reality – things are not as good as we might like to believe. It’s going to be very difficult to grasp a vision of where God is leading unless we can first acknowledge the truth about ourselves.

Here are some questions that might help you get a better sense of the current reality in your local congregation:

How much of our time, energy and resources are leveraged toward gathering as opposed to sending/blessing?

How much of our growth has come from the unchurched or de-churched as opposed to just a shuffling of the sheep?

Who are the names of those outside our fellowship that we are loving, serving and blessing in order to bear witness to the reality of Jesus and his kingdom?

Who has been discipled here in the last year and who are those individuals discipling as a result?

Today is Lance's 5th Anniversary as CGGC E.D.

I point out Lance's fifth anniversary simply as a matter of fact...a look back to a significant CGGC Standing Stone.

It's true. Lance took over the corner office in the headquarters building five years ago today.

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If you read this blog regularly, you know that I often frame my thoughts about the CGGC around Lord's connection to us and around the fruit of that connection, and in terms of two questions.

1. Is the Lord of all authority and power and grace and mercy and blessing blessing us?

2. Are we continuing in the state of spiritual decay and numerical decline that began,  for us, nearly 90 years ago?

I can't see that there is any dispute. The answer to the first question is no. The answer to the second question is yes.

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In a denominational culture dominated by shepherd values, everything we say and do is understood in terms of human relationship.

In our denominational culture, by asking my two questions, especially today, I'm understood to be attacking Lance personally.

Please believe me when I say I'm not attacking Lance personally. I'm not even criticizing him. I love Lance. My heart goes out to him.

But, the real world truth about us can not be denied.

Lance's performance is no better and no worse than that of the men who came before him as our CEO. All of those men were good and nice men who had accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, who loved the Lord and wanted only good things for the church.

Is it possible for us to consider the possibility that the Lord's continued lack of blessing on us has nothing to do with the failure of the men the church elevates to the position of denominational CEO?

Can we accept the fact that the Lord refuses to bless us because, in creating the institution we have built, we have stepped outside of His will?

Can we consider that the most important sins from which we must repent are structural, organizational, institutional?

We must repent. And, we must look to the big picture as we seek to walk in the love and blessing of the Lord.