An Epiphany and a Sign of the Times

Maybe it's a sign of the times. Churches have all kinds of signs, many they don't recognize as such. Often the ones most in need of repair and renewal aren't the ones with paint, lights and materials.

They are the ones with legs and a voice. Or none.

Pastor Rob Bell founded a church in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It's called Mars Hill Church.

Same name except no relation to the multiple campi in Washington and now in Portland. No relation except that both proclaim Christ.
Albeit quite a bit differently at times. Yeah, quite differently.

Funny thing about the church in MI. It never had a sign. Skeptics of Jesus asked for signs to know who he was.
Jesus appeared on earth with no man-made signs. Signs in the heavens, for sure; but they became very sparse right away. But the most ubiquitous and out-of-his-control signs Jesus depended on were the simple signs on a few people's lips:
"Come and see."

Rob Bell's church never had a sign out front. When people asked why not, he always replied, "You found it, didn't you?"

? !

In announcing his decision to leave so that his church could trust its beginnings and its identity by trusting God, Bell answers quite succinctly for all time what the church is. Who the church is. How to find it.

It's in a very short paragraph on page 8 of his letter to Mars Hill. http://marshill.org/teaching/files/2011/12/dear-mars-hill.pdf
It's his anwer to that nagging question about why the church has no sign. His more direct answer here begs that we pay attention to it.

Has the church ever needed any other kind of sign?
I don't think so. But read Bell's little essay and see what you think.
Could be a sign of the times.
Could be an Epiphany, our celebration of God's appearing on earth.
In US, for God's sake!
Yes, in us. For God's sake.

Shalom,
Pastor Roger

Rollin' with Rob Bell: Rich

Evenin', PDX!

Ever had a garage sale? Ever give anything away? Ever put anything into storage?

Have more stuff than you can use? Ever thought of yourself as rich? Maybe not. But consider this:

Do you have clean water? a dry place to sleep? heat? electricity? a place to shower? clean clothes? Ever been to a doctor, hospital, or dentist?

Have a car? phone?

Isn't that the definiton of rich? It is to most people in the world.

But hear Rob Bell tell it much, much better:

722o SE 39th Avenue. 7 PM. Wednesday, February 25, 2009.

NOOMA CONTINUES!!! Bring friends!

Shalom,

Pastor Roger

Rob Bell--off and rolling!

Hi, PDX!

A little more winter sneaks in each day, but the buds are bulging. Spring is lurking out there. . . somewhere.

But it's warm and inviting where Rob Bell shares his amazing gifts of insight. We had a great conversation following the first DVD, BREATHE, last Wednesday, 2/11.

LUGGAGE will keep your attention the whole time this coming Wednesday, 2/18. Think about hw much we carry around that we could let go of. And need to. . . And we aren't just talking suitcases here!

7220 SE 39th Avenue (Holy Trinity Church). 7 PM. Coffee. Conversation. The gifts of the Spirit. Gently. . .

Bring a friend.

Shalom!

Pastor Roger

Rob Bell Rollout--NOOMA in Lent

Hi, PDX!

A little rain to remind us of where we live. That's a good thing.

Where we live... Something VERY exciting is coming to where we live. His name is Rob Bell, and we'll be rolling him out at our first NOOMA in Lent gathering next Wednesday evening, 7 PM at 7220 SE 39th Ave. (just down the road a piece from Woodstock).

NOOMA? Trade mark for a spirited piece of work. Anglicization of "pneuma", Greek for spirit or breath.

Rob Bell talks out in the real world: in/on a subway train, at an auto repair shop, in an airport gate area, outside a stadium, in a restaurant, walking down a wet street lined with cars held up by paramedics and fire fighters at the scene of a two-car accident. Life happens...

Rob Bell talks the way real people do in their private conversations with God and with friends. No fear. No apologies. Nothing but honesty, for once.

Rob Bell won't answer all your questions. Maybe he'll even give you a pile of new ones. But he will lead you on a journey that will bring freshness and hope and wonder to your spiritual path.

All in 10-13 minutes each week. Then there will be 45 minutes for us to exchange thoughts and reflect over coffee. Or tea.

2/11: "Breathe". What does it mean to have life and breath? Is each breath speaking the name of God? Is the breath of God in us? Does life allow us the time to breathe?

Six weeks, starting 2/11. 7 PM. Done by 8 PM. Fun. Free. Bring friends.

LENT. It's not the yucky in your drier vent. It's a journey...

And, yes, we know Lent doesn't start 'til 2/25; but we want to wind up before Spring Break. So we will on 3/18.

Shalom,

Pastor Roger

Rob Bell: Lent--not what's in your dryer vent!

Happy overcast, PDX!

We're under that January pall for sure. I remember a couple of springs like that in Nebraska when I was in high school. Didn't warm up forever. Didn't see the sun forever. Country roads were without a bottom. Mud everywhere. Could just about do a person's spirit in for good. Not here to talk about that though.

Here to talk about Rob Bell. If he and some of his ilk are the future spokespersons and visionaries of those who follow Christ, then we have indeed emerged from a long spiritual pall. And thank God! Just when I was about to asphyxiate, breath comes along. Perhaps that's why he calls his series of monologues NOOMA. That's Anglicization of pneuma, the Greek word for spirit, or breath.

Bell looks straight at the camera and talks like a person who lives in the real world. He asks the questions I've asked for years. He knows that following Christ is not about spending decades of your life trying to get your belief system right before you ever take a step. It's about living in the world where God works and is already at work, proceeding without having much of anything figured out. But proceeding anyway.

That's why I'm so pleased that a little group of Lutherans out in the Woodstock/Eastmoreland area of SE Portland have decided to throw open the doors on six Wedesday evenings, starting February 11 at 7:00 PM. A different Rob Bell video (10-13 minutes) will kick off the evening. Then we'll talk over coffee and cookies for 45 minutes or so. We'll just talk honestly and see where the NOOMA and the pneuma lead us. All questions and comments are fair game if they are spoken in honesty. Really!

Yup! Starting February 11, 2009, 7:00 PM. 7220 SE 39th Avenue, Portland.

Spread the word. Bring friends. It's our way of doing Lent. Which is not what's in your dryer vent.

In succeeding posts I'll give you a preview of where we'll go with Rob. Hard to choose only six of these gems from the 23 he's done so far.

Shalom!

Pastor Roger

Is Your Faith a Gas-Guzzler?

Happy Epiphany, PDX!

Epiphany. From a Greek adverb and a Greek noun, meaning "to appear upon". I wonder how we'd hack it if God actually appeared upon earth today, like a star or comet did in the sky 2K years ago, the way a newborn had done in humble beginnings? What's it mean for God to show up in today's world? Doesn't matter much unless God also shows up in our lives some way.

That leads me to the question above. I was just leafing through the Christian Book Distributors latest sale catalog. I was all done with these folks a couple of years ago. Then I posted a review of a friend's book. Now back on the ol' mailing list.

Still tired of their merchandising. Tired of books aimed at women with the theme of "Jesus is my boyfriend." Hey, Favio doesn't only exist in romance novels! Tired of books for men with the theme of "I stocked my survival cellar, killed three grizzlies, got a new 4WD and 80-inch plasma last week, learned to follow every sentence with PTL! but still trying to reconcile with my kids--if I can even find 'em."

Tired of Christian consumer goods. Tired of having a sense that following Christ requires so much support merchandise. Tired of having tons of words telling me that understanding God and Jesus are so hard that I need their help--instead of listening to Jesus.

So the pointed question: How much "stuff" does it take to run a faith these days? Did God plan it this way? Were redemption and discipleship ever supposed to turn into the church and an industry? Is the only church we know actually an industrial model rather than a discipleship model?

How much "stuff" does my faith need to keep it propped up and limping along? Will more stuff make it healthier? Is my faith a gas-guzzler? Or a green model in which there is no consumption, no waste? Is my faith actually an energy producer rather than an energy consumer? (Use any definition of energy you want here.)

And then there is Rob Bell... Oh, wow! More about him later.

Shalom,

Pastor Roger