Following the hail storm in Davison last week, apparently, there was a roof leak unbeknownst to Dr. Steve and Marilyn Anthony (former District Superintendent on the Eastern Michigan District). They woke up Saturday morning to a laundry room full of a caved-in ceiling. The repair/restoration crew took out more ceiling yesterday. 

File this under: What a bummer. Thankfully, son-in-law, Ryan and other friends helped them and the mess was cleaned up. A roofing company has already patched the holes and inside repairs will be forthcoming. 

Why share the Anthony’s woes?

There are plenty of Christians who think the sky is falling too and I’m not talking about storm damage. They watch their news channel choice and doom and gloom follow. I’m not a marketing guy, but if the TV networks are the indicator, bad news sells. Convince the audience that trouble is coming, viewership rises. During Covid it was the nightly count of deaths and hospitalizations. If a storm is a remote possibility, it’s nonstop coverage. As the heatwave continues in the southwest, we are led to believe the earth will self-destruct in five seconds. With election season coming, more mud will be slung in 30-second advertisements than at a tractor pull competition. Ugh!

We Christians are not ignorant of troubled times. We need not put our heads in the sand, but neither should we think the sky is falling. Christians know the score: Jesus wins. The gospel is the GOOD NEWS. We need to be GOOD NEWS people. The Bible tells us 365 times (a curious number) to not fear. Which may have led the Apostle Paul to write from a Roman prison (arguably a very fearful place) Romans 15:13: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Can one be filled with joy and peace and overflow with a hope powered by the Holy Spirit AND think the sky is falling every time they watch the news or listen to their favorite talk show host?  I don’t know how. Christians, we are to be ambassadors of the Good News of Jesus Christ not be of the Order of the Perpetually Pessimistic, Pickle-sucking, Poo-poo-ers of anything Praiseworthy and Positive (I just made up that “order” but I’ve known several people who are over-qualified be president of the group).

Are there problems in the world? Sure. Should we work to solve them? Of course. Can we join in the many voices from all political spectrums and stations of life bemoaning everything in the world?  Why would we want to do that?  

You might clean up a mess every now and then (aka… Pastor Steve and Marilyn’s laundry room) but even that should not rob us of our joy. In another letter from prison Paul wrote:  Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. (Philippians 4:4) The sky isn’t falling when the Son (see what I did there?) has risen! Rejoice, my brothers and sisters, REJOICE! 

In Central Church’s generosity initiative, IMAGINE, one of the phrases used when talking about building Central Park (but really the whole point of the generosity endeavor) was “we are planting trees we will not climb.” It was another way of saying, “We are sacrificially giving today so the church of tomorrow will be strong.” 

Maybe we are “Planting trees we will not climb,” but there are “slides I will go down.”  

The snail-like playground installers are constructing the Central Park play-scape (one of our IMAGINE priorities). They started in September of 2021 (No, they started a week and a half ago—it only seems like 2021). Each day I drive by to see the progress and every time I think, “I coulda swore (of course I don’t swear) that I saw workers yesterday.” When you are talking about playground safety, we want the installers to take their time and do it right. I shouldn’t make fun.

Assuming they get the project done before I retire (in 2028 or so), I can’t wait to go down the slide. It won’t be the maiden voyage down the slide. Some neighborhood kids will do that when they should be in bed with sugar plumbs dancing in their heads– that’s Christmas lingo, but, at the current rate, the playground construction may still be ongoing in December (making more fun of the slow progress. Sorry). 

To be fair, the very able construction crew informed us that it would look like nothing is getting done as they were pouring cement and prepping the area. It takes time to build a quality play-scape. A 10AM “Start time” and three-hour lunch “hour” may also play a role (I can’t help myself).

Be that as it may, I look forward to going down the slide. As I do, I’ll be IMAGING a future of boys and girls from our church; the Boys & Girls Club of Flint that use our facility; the children from the Fenton Lawn School across from the park; and the kids from the neighborhood swinging, sliding and having fun in Central Park. I hope moms bring their kids. I hope those children with handicaps (yes, there will be some handicap accessible areas) will likewise have fun. I hope the old, barely used softball field, will now be a center of activity. 

Jesus would go to the areas where the people were congregating. He would teach, heal and bless. My prayer is Central Park is a similar place. A place filled with laughter and joy! Church and community gathering together—I can’t wait. You can be sure, I will squeal a loud “Yipppeeeee,” as I zip down the slide. I look forward to seeing all of God’s children doing the same! Remember it was Jesus who said, “Let the children come to me, and do not forbid them” (Matthew 19:14). I hope Central Park embodies that sentiment. 

Now, get out of my way, I might go try out a not-yet-completed slide! As all good Nazarenes are aware: Only feet first sliding– no backsliding!

The argument can be made that the Church of the Nazarene was born out of campmeetings in the 19^th century, yet more and more we seem to be getting out of the campmeeting business. Camps have been sold and campmeetings are not as popular as they once were in many (not all) corners. 

Some district superintendents can’t wait to put the nail in the coffin of their campgrounds. I get it. Campgrounds can be a major headache for those in leadership. Insurance companies don’t like campgrounds. There is a liability around every tree and body of water. They can be expensive. A worry. A bother. I get all of that. 

Campmeetings are still worth it.

This isn’t the pining of an old guy remembering the good ol’ days (well maybe there is a bit of that). 

I had a few “firsts” at Water’s Edge Camp on the Eastern Michigan District (it was just called “the campgrounds,” back in the day). The first time I held a girl’s hand that wasn’t my mom or sister. (I ended up throwing that girl in the lake). The first time a girl “broke up” with me (Throwing her in the lake may or may not have played a role her decision). My first job that wasn’t mowing a neighbor’s lawn (I washed dishes in the kitchen) and my first real pay check. All of these things happened on those grounds.

Much more importantly, on those sacred grounds I was baptized in the “girls’” lake. Boys and girls swam in different lakes in those days. FYI, the “girls’” lake was not a great lake. Lots of weeds. No cool dock like the “boys’” lake. There were rusty swing sets nearby. Hand-me-downs from someplace, no doubt. Clearly, “gender equality” was not a discussion in those days. 

I felt called to full time ministry on those grounds also by the girls’ lake. It was at an all teen “afterglow” campfire in which the only teens in attendance were the soon-to-be-seventh graders who didn’t know the “all-teen afterglow” wasn’t a cool thing to attend. Upperclassmen didn’t show up that night, but God did. It was on that evening that I first sensed a call to a life of full time ministry. Those were the biggie events for me, but there were plenty of other times of drawing near to the Lord on those grounds too.   

Times have changed since I was tooling around the campgrounds on my black, banana seat bike-o-saurus. What hasn’t changed is that Water’s Edge is still holy ground. It’s family camp week. Be in prayer for Dr. Scott Daniels and Dr. David Busic (Have two current General Superintendents ever been on the same campmeeting docket at any camp before this week?). Dr. Tim Gaines is the morning Bible teacher (again not too shabby).

Pray for all the happenings at this week’s family camp. People still encounter God on that campground. I’m glad the Eastern Michigan District still values what happens on Burkhart Road in Cohoctah Township. God will be there. Speaking. Moving. Saving. Sanctifying. Calling.

Big news recently came out of P&B office in Lenexa and my response is six words: “Thank you! Thank You! Thank You!!”

To say that the Church of the Nazarene’s old, old retirement plan was a joke—would be a laughable understatement if it weren’t so true. Those in the old retirement plan barely get enough to buy a daily cup of coffee. I pastored several years under the old plan, but not long enough to be “grandfathered” into it. I get zippo for those years of service. Yippee! (Please read that “Yippee” sarcastically). One Nazarene retiree told me of his whopping $133.93/a month payout. Another retired pastor told me he receives $283 monthly for 36 years of service. Yippee (please read that “Yippee” sarcastically too). 

Most of pastors in the Church of the Nazarene are in the current 403(b) plan which gives a whopping max payment from the denomination of $450 (that’s if the church paid its budgets and pastor contributed $250 of their money). When I tell people this news, usually they say, “the church puts $450 into your retirement account each month? Not bad.” 

“No. Each year.” 

Generally, the follow-up response is “Ugh… glad I’m not a pastor in the Church of the Nazarene.”

But that’s changing. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. (You can read the article detailing the new plan by Kevin Gilmore, the director of Pensions and Benefits, here).

Beginning in 2024, the new max payout is $2500 a year (that’s a 50% match of the “local” contribution. The “local contribution” is pastor’s and church’s contribution combined). This is HUGE—especially for young pastors. It will help old timers like me in these final years as we head into the home stretch of retirement. But for young pastors in their 20s, 30s and even 40s, it’s a really big change and can make a big difference in their retirement planning. 

Here’s how it works if the “local” contribution is $5000: For example, if the church contributes $2500 and the pastor contributes $2500, then the denomination tosses in $2500. So the pastor’s $2500 investment in their retirement, turns into a $7500 contribution. Over the course of 36 years of service to the church, the pastor will be far, far ahead of my friend who receives $283 a month. Yippee (that “yippee” is for real!).

It’s a no brainer. Pastors, churches and the denomination in cooperation can now make a meaningful effort to prepare for the pastor’s retirement. I hope each church looks into how they might supplement their pastor’s retirement and that every pastor also contributes to take advantage of this new change.

The only string attached is for local churches to pay their P&B budget. Even this is an improvement. The P&B office will look at a five-year average, in case a church has an off year and is unable to pay in full the P&B budget. Also there is no string attached to payment of the church’s educational budget. The new plan is simpler, more generous and hopefully will not leave our Nazarene retirees living below the poverty line. 

Again to Kevin Gilmore, the P&B staff, the General Superintendents or to whomever made this decision: Thank you! Thank you! Thank You!

Conversation #1: Yesterday, I met a couple who have come to Central Church a few times. They made a point to meet me. With their Exodus journals in hand, they told me they love Central Church and love our emphasis on the Bible. They said, “You don’t know how many churches just don’t talk about the Bible these days.”  

Conversation #2: Just prior to that discussion, I met a first-time guest. I asked her what made her come to Central Church and she said, “I heard this church really loves the community and I wanted to come and check you out for myself.”  

Conversation #3: A long time member said to me concerning our upcoming 24/7 Prayer week (someone in the building praying for the entire 168 hours from August 6-13): “Pastor, I’m so glad we are a praying church.” 

I love it!  

A commitment to scripture and to our neighbors draws people. A commitment to prayer keeps people.

People want to be in a church that preaches the Bible and loves their community. In too many churches, it’s either one or the other. Churches that attempt to love their neighbors too often aren’t preaching the Bible; or churches that are preaching the Bible, too often aren’t doing a great job in loving their neighbors. The two aren’t mutually exclusive. It’s just the opposite. The Bible calls us to love our neighbors. The more we emphasize “both/and” and not “either/or” the more compelling Central Church will be.

Moreover, prayer is over all. A deep commitment to prayer is what people are longing for even if they initially can’t articulate it. Community outreach and Biblical teaching might get them through the door. A deepening of their prayer life and connection to Jesus is what keeps them. (Edited to read: this is an over-simplification, of course. Discipleship, fellowship, worship are all factors in keeping people, but all of those endeavors must be bathed in prayer and flow from a church’s commitment to prayer). 

Conclusion: Old church growth models emphasizing attraction events, being seeker sensitive, developing homogeneous units, blah, blah, blah don’t work in the 2020’s. It’s a commitment to prayer, sound Biblical teaching and loving one’s community that draws and keeps people. 

Five months ago today, our friend, Lisa Faulkner, who had come to stay in our home, celebrated her 58^th birthday. Four months ago today, she changed addresses from our place in Grand Blanc to a heavenly mansion. Clearly, she got an upgrade. Even writing those words, while sitting at my kitchen table, and drinking out of a mug that had been Lisa’s, seems surreal. (Shameless plug: You can read about our journey here). Has four months already passed since Lisa went to heaven?

Karla and I had never invited someone to live with us (and might never do it again). But we’ve always viewed out house as “God’s house.” Our name might be on the deed but we want our house to be used by the Lord (well, technically, the mortgage company owns more of this ol’ house than we do, but you know what I mean). To that end, we have various church parties at our house. Our former home group (that was disbanded when Lisa got really bad) is having a cookout/potluck tonight in our backyard (30-something people); last week it was the last Panama team (12 people); and next week it will be the church board, pastors and their spouses having dinner here (50 people). Our house isn’t our house, it’s the Lord’s. 

Too often, we think of stewardship as money. Jesus gets 10% and we get 90%. But good stewardship involves more than my bank account. Jesus owns everything. My money. My things. My time. My gifts. Everything.

The prophet Micah talks of the windows of heaven being opened when we tithe. He is talking about being blessed when we are faithful. Name-it-claim-it preachers have taken that to mean that bundles of money will be thrown your way if you pass the tithing test. I haven’t seen that happen, but what I have seen is better than money, at least in Lisa’s case.

Here’s the rest of Lisa’s story: Lisa moved in with us in November of 2021, she died four months ago as stated above. Prior to that, Lisa’s brother, Tim, had been to church a handful of times, but not the rest of her family. I had never met them. If you knew Lisa, her prayer was that her family would come to know Jesus. That was it. That was her greatest desire. 

In Lisa’s closing days, we got to know Tim and his wife, Sally. They came to our house (God’s house). We ate meals together. We sang around Lisa’s bed together. We became friends. Lisa and the Lord brought us together and today (praise the Lord!!!) they are in church nearly every Sunday. Lisa’s nephew and other others family members are too. It’s no small drive to come to church (they live in Vassar). But nearly every week, our friend Lisa’s answered prayers comes walking through the church doors. The windows of heaven have been opened. The blessings aren’t bundles of money, it’s Lisa’s family. 

Our house is God’s house. Karla is praying that God sends hail storm to “His” house. it needs a new roof. I don’t think that’s the way it works, but God does bless in exciting ways when He is the owner, and we are the stewards of all that we have. Lisa’s family is the living proof!

With apologies to Scott Daniels, Brian Zahnd and Walter Brueggemann (all who have written on the western Christian experience in the 21^st century with the Israelite Babylonian captivity period in the 6^th century BC), I am wondering if our experience is more like the children of Israel in the Exodus story. We aren’t strangers in a foreign land, instead we are quite comfortable and view life through a cultural lens of things foreign to God. Caution: whenever you begin a paragraph “with apologies” to the above theological heavy weights, you are probably in dangerous territory. 

It’s not totally my idea. The more I get into the Book of Exodus, the more I’ve been thinking about this (the Flint Central congregation is going through the book of Exodus this summer). Additionally, I was at a workshop where Olivet Nazarene University professor, Jeff Stark, threw this notion out to the group. I had to leave half way through the seminar, so please don’t blame Jeff for the rest of these thoughts. But his introduction further cultivated my imagination: Are we more like the Jews fresh out of Egypt? 

Maybe we are.

In 1607, Englishmen arrived in Jamestown. Likewise, the Jews were in Egypt for 430 years. Both USA citizens and the Israelites coming out of Egypt had been heavily influenced by the prevailing culture for 400 years. I’ve told our congregation several times, it was harder getting Egypt out of the people than getting the children of Israel out of Egypt (you will recall– It wasn’t easy getting the former slaves out of Egypt. It took ten plagues and a miraculous crossing of the Red Sea). Then 40 years later, on a journey that should have taken 11 days, the people were ready to enter the Promised Land. It took forty years of wandering in the wilderness to exorcise the Egyptian culture out of the people (a case could be made that the way of the Egyptians was never fully exorcised from them). Sometimes I wonder if we will ever escape the cultural influences upon us.

Our culture is diverse but strong. A drift away from God, regardless of one’s cultural influences, is seen in how one interprets Micah’s understanding of what God requires of people: “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). On the one hand there are those who think (but might not say): “Justice? Yes, but not social justice—that’s socialism; Mercy? Sure, but that only goes so far; Humble? Of course, but my way of thinking is the only way.” On the other hand, are those who think (but might not say): “God requires? The only thing that is “required” is love. There’s no need to “Act” (justly or otherwise) or “Walk” (humbly or otherwise), just love. Love. Love. Love. Period. End of Story. No condemnation. No judgement. No anything. Just “love” (mercy or otherwise).” 

I want to say, “Ugh…” to both sides of that misguided coin.

Moreover, too often people today, like the folks in Exodus, are constantly complaining; wanting to go back to their old ways (even though that was slavery); grumbling against leadership (is this the grumbliest generation ever?); looking for other gods at the first sign of God’s silence; and are mostly a mess. But mostly like the people coming out of Egypt, we have miles to go to move away from the heavy cultural forces upon us. Keeping God front and CENTER was the way then and it’s the way now. The Israelites had trouble doing that, it seems we do too. 

Our Central Church students are at NYC today. Not New York City. Nazarene Youth Conference. It’s in Tampa. Tampa in January is great. Tampa in July? Think: Sauna. Don’t believe people who say, “It’s not the heat; it’s the humidity.” It’s the heat AND the humidity. In spite feeling like they’ve been hit in the face by a wet blanket fresh out of the oven, our 45 students and five adults are part of a gathering of 10,000 students from across USA and Canada in steamy Tampa.

NYC is an every four year conference (although the next one will be in three years), where youth gather for worship services, Christian concerts and lots of fun.  My son, Alex, went to NYC in St. Louis in 2007 and Ben went to NYC in 2011 in Louisville (Ben went back to NYC in Louisville in 2015 when he worked the summer with non-profit Forge Flint). It’s a great event. One could argue, it’s the best thing that the Church of the Nazarene does.

Imagine with me (maybe “Pray with me” is the more correct phrase, but I’ll stick with “Imagine”). Imagine if God Almighty came in such a powerful way that those 10,000 NYC students were forever changed. Now (keep imagining) those 10,000 students then went home. On fire, not because of Tampa’s heat wave, but because of an unforgettable encounter with Jesus. Changed. Empowered. Infused with the Holy Spirit. Some of those students live in homes that are already on fire for Jesus. Great. An on-fire-for-Jesus student returns home and makes a great family even better. But some of those students are from homes that are filled with dysfunction and brokenness. Do you think God could use an on-fire, Holy Spirit empowered teenager in that circumstance? I do. Paul would agree. That’s why he wrote Timothy these words: “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12). 

Imagine (are you still imagining?) those NYC students come home and do just that… set an example for the rest of us. Whether we are living for Jesus or not. They come home and set the example in all areas of life (Paul left nothing out on the above list). 10,000 students leading the charge, setting an example and making a difference could have a powerful effect not just upon the churches and homes to which they return, but upon our world.

Here’s what I mean: If 10,000 NYC students came home and splashed (not the sweat from steaming Tampa, but the Holy Spirit’s fervor) on just 4 people, now we were at 50,000 people influenced for Jesus. Imagine (don’t stop imagining now, we’re just getting to the fun part) if those 50,000 people splashed on four people, now we are at 200,000 people. You get where I am heading, don’t you? Splash. Splash. Splash. Splash and our country (and Canada too) would be reached for Christ. I am imaging that… no, I’m praying for that eventuality. The theme of NYC 2023 is Overflow. I hope, imagine and pray that the outpouring of the Holy Spirit overflows from our students, and onto our church and onto me. 

Old people like me tend to watch too much news; hear too many bad reports; believe too many tales of the world going down the tubes. But if 10,000 NYC students returned to their cities, schools and churches filled with the Holy Spirit and leading by example—only God knows the impact they can have. I’m praying for NYC 2023. I’m praying that it doesn’t stop in Tampa, but rather the Spirit’s moving ‘overflows” and splashes onto us too!

Just imagine what God could do!

File the following phrase under “Words Not Found in the Bible”:
“And Jesus fought with the Pharisees…”

Neither does it say, “Jesus brawled with the Herodians” or “Jesus attacked the Roman occupiers.” Jesus clearly had stark differences with each of those groups, but the Bible doesn’t record shouting matches or dust ups. Never, not even once, does it say that Jesus quarreled with the disciples (sometimes the disciples argued among themselves). Never does he tell one of his disciples, “Sorry, I guess we can’t be friends anymore.”

When discussing the Lord’s holy anger, people like to point out Jesus’ confrontation with the moneychangers at the temple. He flipped some tables, scattered their ill-gotten gains and even made a whip. The Bible doesn’t say he used the whip on somebody. Apparently, no one went to the emergency room. He was making point to those clearly outside the bounds of godliness. They were religious profiteers preying on those who could least afford it. Even as he is chasing the money changers out, there is no recorded argument. No physical confrontation.

A case could be made, if ever there was a time to fight this was at his arrest. Probably Peter would have agreed and was the reason why he brought his sword. Still Jesus said “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.” (John 18:36). The Kingdom of God isn’t about fighting. It’s a new way forward without violence, but also without character assignations, without snide comments, without gossip, without “taking sides” and without “the silent treatment.” The Kingdom of God is not middle school (with apologies to all the great middle schoolers out there). 

Paul sums up the needed posture for leaders in 2 Timothy: “the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone” (2 Timothy 2:24). In case, you are wondering 2 Timothy 2:25 does not say, “unless they disagree with you.” It simply says, “be kind to everyone.” Period. End of discussion. 

Christians will not always agree on every theological nuance. We will not always agree on the best steps forward in building the kingdom. Two Christians can disagree on the plenty of non-essentials. Through it all, it would do us well to remember who our Enemy is. It’s not our fellow believers. It’s not the church down the road. It’s not the ones to the slightly right or left of us. Our Enemy is the Father of Lies. Our Example, on the other hand, is the Prince of Peace who calls us to be peacemakers, to be kind, to get along with everyone, and, in so doing, advance His Kingdom.