Karl Westerhof

Yes. Terry W, you are the first to post the good news - Synod said Yes to the request to set up a task force to study the office of deacon. According to the denominational staff, suggestions are already beginning to come in for persons to serve on that task force. Along with many other important decisions on justice-related matters, this decision is another reason to thank God for the work of Synod 2010.

Isn't this a vexing question?  I've felt torn about this SO many sundays.  I LOVE the value of full participation, AND I grieve when people who cannot read well are doing the scripture reading.  Sometimes I'm ashamed to say I'm totally distracted by inept liturgical dancers or singers or whatever.  

But yet.....  seems to me that making sure people are being nurtured to grow in their abilities is an important dimension of this discussion, and then expecting that people will do their best and challenging them to do so .....   that's another important dimension.  I'm thinking that worship planning committees should be obligated to coach worship leaders so that they feel supported and encouraged and enabled. 

I'd like to think that congregations could see to it that people get coached and trained and helped to do their best.   And once that is in place, then encouraging broad participation is the value that trumps excellence in performance.  The kind of excellence I most want to see is excellence in being a community of inclusion, participation, grace, and diversity.

I recently read the book COMMUNITY by Peter Block, and found many things that stimulated my imagination, and rekindled my passion for a nurturing community. I also found it really relevant to the thinking being done by us CRC folk on how to better work in networks of congregations and organizations and agencies. I really loved this question: what behavior am I now engaging in that is helping to create the future I long for?

Neil, I really like this. I personally am wired toward a lot more control than this, and surely our denominational systems are set up to give predictability and control. I pray that the spirit of creativity and adaptability may overwhelm my craving for control. And led by the Spirit I may be more willing to let myself BE controlled rather than to control. Keep on nudging us.

thanks, Abigail, for this work with old colleagues!   I was one of those writers of dusty letters back in the late 80s,(yes they seemed dusty even while I wrote), and I remember that the fax was a new hi-tech development over there in Asia.Nobody dreamed of such a thing as email.  I really enjoyed reading your reflections on the boxes of correspondence.  

This Callahan dude is the bomb!    I love those lines - some money is not worth raising....  the annual budget is the most missional document in the church.   Or oughtta be!

OK, Jeff, I know you've thought about this a lot - How CAN we clearly communicate this to the people we serve?

Here's a few indicators of a healthy classis, off the top of my head.   What do others think?

It's safe and inviting for all voices to be heard.

Competition is near zero and encouraging behaviors are common.

Information is openly and freely available throughout the system, and it's easy to give input and be heard on issues before they come up for decision.

Attenders are routinely briefed on the rules for how to participate effectively.

Technical and procedural and organizational matters are kept to a modest part of the agenda, and most of the focus is on encouraging and enabling people and congregations for enhanced ministry.

People are seated in an arrangement that promotes community and mutuality.

Devotions including prayers for each other are a significant part of what happens on a regular basis.

People leave feeling energized for their mission as followers of Jesus.

Cindy, I'm 67 years old and I still have those questions!  What movies is it ok to watch?   When I'm reading a magazine, how can I keep my eyes and thoughts from "crossing the line"?  When have I gone one bottle of beer too far?  Now granted things are different now than when I was 20.  I'm different and there are different temptations too.  but a lot of the issues are the same, and these questions about morality are still just as vexing.   And where in the world do you look to find some helpful advice?   You want someone who is really believable, and someone who is really biblical, and who is realistic about what it's like to live in 2010!   Soak yourself in the Gospels.  Spend a LOT of time with Jesus.  Let his way of thinking and living drench your mind and heart.   That's the starting place.  And I'm going to say something that is a lot like what Ken and Marcel have said.   Here's the thing - I always tend to ask the question How far is too far?   That is a question that lets me see how close I can drive to the edge and still stay out of the ditch.   But the real question is, How far from the ditch can I drive?    and then the question about HOW CLOSE won't bug me so much.   THAT is a very very hard thing to practice.  I know because I fail at it pretty consistently.  I think we all do.  But that's the right approach to take - not how far from Jesus can I wander and still be ok, but How close can I live to Jesus.    May God empower you and grace you with a new way to live.

I usually like Wright a lot, and find him carefully biblical, and this book really resonated with me! By God's good grace, I read it very shortly before losing my daughter to leukemia (Nov 1). It was excellent preparation for that loss and the journey of grief. Truly we mourn, but not as those who have no hope. He is risen.