Relative Truths

Ok, so if you follow me on twitter (@scwalters), you know I was on vacation last week.  After three consecutive blog posts the week before, I was off to the beach.  Man, I needed that week.  It was the longest vacation Rebekah and I have taken since we got back from our honeymoon 7 years ago (BTW, it was our anniversary last week which was the motivation for the vacation).  We spent Monday-Thursday sitting on the beach just reading books and watching (more coming this week on the books I read).  We went on some nature walks Wednesday and spent Friday-Sunday seeing some of her family.  Yesterday, I helped my Pop with his deck expansion project and we had dinner with my folks.  Good vacation.

Well, it was a little tricky getting back to it today.  I haven’t set an alarm since May 22.  It was very annoying to hear that this morning.  I haven’t had to get up, get ready, and head off that quickly in a week.  My list of tasks today is pretty large, and the email in my inbox was overflowing!  So, today has been an adjustment.

However, I realized something today.  I really love what I do.  Most of you know that Connection Church will be closing to join with Suwanee First UMC in late June.  I have tons of meetings to set-up and a ton of logistical stuff to do.  I have Sunday’s message to write and a new July series to think of (the one I had planned for Connection probably won’t work with the move).  But, all of this work is about spreading the good news of Jesus Christ and helping people realize the joy of a life and relationship with Him.  So, I love getting to do that.  The truth is, its a lot easier to come back from a vacation when you are coming back to something you love.  Now, if my job was to pick the lint from between people’s toes, my feelings might be different…

Ok, so I have done two blogs on my Catalyst experience.  For those that follow me (and God bless you), you know that I have been less than regular with my blogs.  There are more about Catalyst coming, but there will be a break for a few days.  So, don’t worry.

Anyway, you can read the last two blogs here and here.  Another thing that struck me was the importance of unity in the body of Christ.  One of the speakers at the conference was a man names Dr. John M Perkins.  I had never heard of him, but I think he is my new hero.  He is an African-American pastor who had to flee Mississippi as a teenager when his brother was killed.  After returning to Mississippi, following God’s call, he was arrested several times for trying to bring equal rights to African-Americans.  The thing that struck me was his desire for a unified body of Christ.

See, Jesus calls us to One Body.  I don’t think Jesus intended for “all nations” mentioned in Matthew 28 to be separated by color or culture.  I think he wanted all nations to worship together.  After all, didn’t something similar happen in Acts 2?  Anyway, Dr. Perkins made it clear that white churches, black churches, etc should worship God as one.  It is sad to me that Sunday at 11 am is still the most segregated hour in America.  Why do we have the same Lord, but not worship together?

Now, I know that some will say style or familiarity or community.  However, at Connection Church, race doesn’t seem to matter.  I have seen churches that are truly multi-racial do really amazing things.  I hate to think that Dr. Perkins has spent his life fighting to make us one body only for us to keep separating it.

I guess the truth in all of this is, are we one body?  I pray that we are and that we can come to a place where we can worship God as one.  The rapture might come at some point tonight (it is May 21), but before that, let’s come together.

Ok, so yesterday I mentioned going to Catalyst Dallas.  It was something I really wanted to attend a few months ago because I love leadership conferences and I have always wanted to go to Texas.  Anyway, after I registered, I found out that my ministry setting will be changing.  My faithful readers know that I started a church three years ago, Connection Church in Suwanee, GA.  In June, we will be closing to unite with Suwanee First UMC.  While I am a little nervous, it is very exciting to think what we will be able to do with the people at Suwanee First.

However, the nervous part is still there.  This conference really helped me with that.  Andy Stanley spoke first, and he spoke about three phases of courage: The courage to stay when everything else says leave, the courage to leave when everything else says stay, and the courage to ask for help when its easier to pretend that everything is ok.  The first thing really stuck with me.  For the last few months, we have been looking at a way to continue our ministry in Suwanee.  The idea of uniting with Suwanee First is exciting because it allows us to do that (and we don’t have to set-up a stage every week!).  However, it takes courage to do this.  For the people at Connection, they will have to make adjustments.  For the people at Suwanee First, they will have to make adjustments.  Obviously, I’ll make adjustments.  However, the people of both churches have decided to stay and do God’s work.  There is an excitement about his that is inspiring.

So, the truth is that my current and future church is modeling courage to me.  They are staying to do the work of God, and I cannot wait to get going on this with them.  Now, we have 5 Sundays left at the Middle School.  We are going to give God our best there before we head to Suwanee First.  That is what courage is all about.

Ok, so, I went to Catalyst Dallas last week in Dallas, TX. Growing up in Georgia, I have always wanted to visit a place that has mottos like, “Don’t Mess With Texas” and “Everything is Bigger in Texas!” I also have a great woman at my church from Texas. Because she will pull for UGA, I have found myself pulling for UT (Texas, never Tennessee!). Anyway, my experience there was pretty amazing.

I want to spend a few blogs talking about what happened there. One thing I noticed there was that things really are bigger. Everywhere I looked, I saw really big churches. The conference was held in a church that seated about 3,500 people. That’s big to me. However, right down the street was a church that made this one look a little small. I want to know what the churches in Dallas do to help grow!

Anyway, the thing that came to me last week was the impact that body of Christ can have when it takes courage (theme of the conference) and seeks to be a catalyst of change. God spoke a lot to me during the two days I was there. The first thing that hit me was, “Am I willing to be a catalyst?” The reality I notice is that many pastors, myself included, get into a mode of saying, if only I had this or that or more money, or a bigger building, or more people, or whatever, then we could really do effective ministry. The truth is that we have to decide to we want to be a catalyst for God. He can do whatever He wants with whatever He wants. He can use my little church, my little talent, my little resources, as long as I am willing to be used for His kingdom. So, yes, I want to be a catalyst. Come back later for more ways in which this truth was spoken to me last week!