Transformation

Could this be the moment? I get a little uneasy when I hear people talking so glibly about "kairos moments". So I hesitate to even suggest one may be upon us, BUT....Consider this cluster of stuff that has sort of congealed in my consciousness recently: there's the employment and foreclosure crisis as background to remind us of the urgency of the task; there’s the denomination's priority on congregations that are TRANSFORMATIONAL in their communities; there's Calvin's 500th birthday with its reminders of his community wide concerns; there's this rising tide of interest in Calvinism, as evidenced for example in YOUNG RESTLESS AND REFORMED, and in the August '09 Banner; there's the Belhar confession and its high profile now in the CRC; there's the CRCNA NETWORK to assist congregations in their work.

There's Home Missions church planters' passion for their neighborhoods. There's the newly created Communities First Assn designed to ramp up CRWRC's ability to help congregations be transformational. There's a new deacons' handbook out from Faith Alive. There's more as well, but the list is too long already. What's the point? What's the KAIROS moment? What if our denomination is poised for a leadership position as the world church rediscovers its community responsibilities?

What if our understanding of the role of the DEACON, is just now coming into its own as the "cutting edge" in the NA scene? What if CRC deacons are on the verge of becoming the "point" for the revitalization of congregations and their communities - changed lives and communities? Am I silly? Naive? We've got the theological, organizational, ecclesiastical underpinnings in place. We've got deacons ordained in every single CRC congregation in NA. Every single one of them has been charged to be prophetic critics of injustice and sensitive counselors to the victims. Every single one of them has been charged to "prompt us to seize new opportunities to worship God" with our resources.

Let's hear from CRC congregations where deacons are on the move. Let's learn from them. I hate to say it, but in my own experience, the "leadership" of the church has always been assumed to be pretty much the pastors and maybe sort of the elders too. What if we are at a moment when what we need most urgently is forceful, prophetic, sensitive leadership from the deacons? What if? What if the revitalization of the CRC depends like never before on deacons to show us how to answer the urgent needs in our communities? What if now is the moment to mobilize the denomination to do the deeds which will provoke the questions to which the Gospel is the answer?

Is this the time for pastors, elders and deacons to SHARE leadership together, gathering the specific gifts and callings, and shaping the leadership team to respond to opportunities. Deacons would have a high profile in this mix these days I think. I'd go so far as to say it might be a kairos moment for deacons.