Yet Another Cancellation
Let me just start by saying, we are cancelling Wednesday night activities on January 30th. The windchill is expected to be somewhere around 50 below zero, and schools are already closing tomorrow because of the extreme cold.
I know, I know somehow I fear that we hardened North Dakotans are becoming a little wimpy. Back in the day our forefathers would have heated up a rock on the wood stove, loaded it in the wagon to keep the kids feet warm, hitched up the horses and headed to out to where they needed to go. And here we are canceling church services on a wednesday night.
I have thought about this a bit, I really have. And I think we need to rethink some of our priorities.
I am all for our Wednesday night activities. They give us a chance to gather in the middle of the week. For our families to spend some time together. For the volunteers who really do serve and love the kids and students of the church to spend time discipling and being discipled.
Because that really is the heart of it isn’t it? Discipleship. And that’s the question I have been wrestling with for a while. What is the heart of discipleship in our current climate and landscape?
Is the heart of discipleship providing programs? Is the heart of discipleship consistency in all we do? Is the heart of discipleship time? What are the things we need to focus on to grow as disciples and to help our children grow as disciples?
I think essentially there are three or maybe four possible components to what discipleship is.
The first component is grace.
By the cross, by his life, death, and resurrection, Jesus offers us grace. We are loved wholly, fully, and completely in spite of what we are. We are recipients of grace from God and we are givers of grace to one another. When we know that are absolutely welcome and loved, we are safe. Safe to admit our mistakes. Safe to say in a public place that just maybe last week we shouldn’t have cancelled services because the wind wasn’t really that bad after all. We are safe to be able to vent our frustrations and continue to be loved and accepted. We are welcome even if our flaws become apparent.
The second component is truth.
We need to be told we are not completely ok as we are. We need to be told there are places we could maybe grow. We need to be told that we have been shaped into consumers by our culture. That we need to combat our desire to receive and instead maybe we need to find ways to give. As parents raising children, this might mean we depend less on church programs and more on ourselves to teach our children the Bible.
There is another component that I might place under truth. That is Vision. We need an idea of what we could become. Coupled with a grace that says it is ok if we aren’t there yet, we need some idea of what we are moving toward. A hope for a future better than this one.
Finally, we need time. We are going someplace. We are becoming different people. We are becoming less focused on ourselves, our wants, our needs, our desires and we are moving toward becoming people who look a little bit more like Jesus. People who are a little more tolerant, a little more holy, and a little more concerned about the Kingdom of God coming to earth. But that takes a while. So we need time.
These three are the essential components in Discipleship. I am committed to balancing these three things as well as I can, and leading us toward in the years ahead. Programing is a place that allows for these things to happen, but it is not essential.
When we choose to cancel because of blowing snow, extreme cold, or seasons of rest – Grace Truth and Time will still be in focus and will always be stressed.
This Wednesday night when you have nothing else to do, take five minutes. Look at your spouse, your family, or your roommates and let them know that you and God both know they aren’t perfect. That you and God love them anyway. And that you will give them time to become what He is calling us all to be.
Enjoy staying in the warm house and stay safe if you need to go outside.