new direction unvailed

i spent the first part of my week attending a workshop that explained the new direction for our annual conference -- a church phrase that basically means our group of churches in united methodism in the northern half of california and the northern part of nevada; some 375 churches.

but before i got to that part, i wanted to share the view from my window in the santa cruz mountains. it felt very private and restful! so this is where i spent three days; beginning my morning in time for breakfast at 8 and finishing up by about 9 in the evening. useful time...productive time...even some restful times...and here i am, as they say, 'back at it again!



so this is a picture of what our movement into the 21st century will look like...we are working to re-order our conference so that all our energy and the movement of all of our churches will be aligned with one another, so that we might focus, not on ourselves, but offering the grace of god through jesus to others. our practice will be to 'make disciples of jesus christ for the transformation of the world'.

we united methodists have not always been a 'come to jesus' kind of people...of course we've always believed and lived the jesus way, but we haven't been so 'inviting' in a real and intense way. we've been the 'well, if you want to come to church, come to ours' sort of people...and 'we will feed you a pot-luck meal, and give you church coffee'. (a note about church coffee...if you like weak/see through coffee, come to church. but if you like strength, come to our welcome coffee before church!)

anyway, we're working at learning how to be more intentional. instead of being the 'if you've got nothing else better to do' kind of people, we are learning to be intentional -- listening to other's needs and longings in the spiritual realm; really trying to offer jesus, not as a last chance sort of experience, but as a friend, companion, meaningful way to live; we're trying not to keep jesus a secret -- actually, we're not trying to keep our christian faith so private any longer. as united methodists, particularly in merced, we are wanting to express a more progressive kind of expression for our faith; to be in mission and service, and to invite others to experience the kind of love and life we are encountering.

we hope to share a 'non-judgment christianity', where going to hell isn't an option -- isn't even part of the conversation; christianity in new clothes, so to speak. we're inviting those who are longing to be renewed and have a spiritual presence in their lives to find themselves greeted with the eyes and hands of jesus; to be neighbor, friend, fellow-journeyer in faith; growing in love and grace.

paul nixon (no relation to richard, i don't think) wrote a book called 'i refuse to lead a dying church'. he was one of our presenters. paul offered six concepts -- choices, really -- worth thinking about in terms of becoming a "living faith": 1. life over death. 2. community over isolation. 3. choosing fun over drudgery. 4. being a frontier over being a fortress (people unfamiliar with 'church' aren't about to walk into a 'church building' unless they are invited and have to go -- usually to a funeral or a wedding!) 5. bold over mild (why don't you come with me -- i think you might find what you need; as opposed to, well, you can come if you want!) and 6, now over later -- what is the mission of god calling us to?

exciting times ahead.



and so i took this picture as a reminder that even in the midst of tranquility, life is moving; notice the sun exposing the waterfall, as it cascades over roots that have grown together to be a barrier. the leaves of autumn have fallen into the water, and they can't get out...but not all of them are stuck in that path. some have found their away around the blockage, and are moving forward.

i believe this is a great image...a new direction. this is the reminder that we could, as a church, just pack it in. but if we do that, everyone misses out! we simply need to explore our options and notice that packing it in is only one option. people have many choices now. jesus is but one option.

as christians in the 21st century, we have come to believe that jesus points us to god's message of welcoming grace. others choose other paths. our focus: to be inviting of those who seem to have no path; no direction, or have been discouraged by 'the christian church'. could jesus be what they need?

well, you'll never know unless you enter into conversation. just start with a smile, and a hello. the relationship will develop from there . . . .