How many times have you come across a tip jar at your favorite coffee shop that has a hand written paper sign attached to it encouraging you to leave a few coins behind. The most common one I’ve seen goes something like this, “Fear change? Leave it here.” To which I reply in my mind, “I like change, and not just the round metallic kind.” I then grab my extra foamy latte and head back out into the world without leaving a tip.
Life is full of change, bad,
many times unnoticeable other times for good. The moment we’re conceived
we begin to change. In fact if you aren’t facing change your dead.
I read a quote today that illuminates this topic today, “The only human
institution which rejects progress is the cemetery.” Spoken by Harold
Wilson former British Prime Minister during the 60’s and 70’s. For the
purpose of our discussion today I am editing Mr. Wilson’s quote to say, “The
only human institution which rejects progress is the church.”
The discussion isn’t whether or not the church is a “human institution”. For the record, I love the church in all of its expressions and believe it’s God’s model, but that is another entry waiting to be written. Today we need to look at change as it pertains to the church and why we the church are so reluctant to embrace it.
Change in the church isn’t a new topic. In Acts Chapter 6:11-14 we see Stephen accused of promoting change and it costs him his life. Why was the reaction of the current church leadership so violent in its opposition to healthy change?
A wise musician once sang, “The key to change… is to let go of fear.” Fear is an enemy of change. There are healthy types of fear that keep us from sticking our hands in a campfire and there are unhealthy fears that control us and keep us from living life abundantly. God reminds us “Perfect love cast’s out fear” and Paul reminded Timothy, “You were not given a spirit of fear…” The fear of change is an unhealthy fear when it comes to the church and one that leads the church to decay and die. Still, some of us are stubborn enough to cling to the attitude that “Change is bad.” And we insist as W. Edwards Deming did that, “It's not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory."
Life is full of change, bad,
many times unnoticeable other times for good. The moment we’re conceived
we begin to change. In fact if you aren’t facing change your dead.
I read a quote today that illuminates this topic today, “The only human
institution which rejects progress is the cemetery.” Spoken by Harold
Wilson former British Prime Minister during the 60’s and 70’s. For the
purpose of our discussion today I am editing Mr. Wilson’s quote to say, “The
only human institution which rejects progress is the church.”
I don’t think that God wants to replace anyone who is willing to work with Him. He does desire for us to abide in him so that we remain moldable and responsive to the prompting of his spirit. The only time we see people replaced, so to speak, is when they outright refuse to submit to Spirit led change. God’s plan will not be stopped by our stubborn refusal to change. And according to advertising executive Bruce Barton, “When your through changing, your through.”
Discomfort is another reason we avoid change. As Americans we go to great lengths to avoid discomfort. Most of the innovations in the past 100 years are focused on efficiency and comfort. Last week as I was flying across the US and I was bored, so I dug into the seat pocket in front of me and pulled out the “SKY MALL” catalogue. It’s full of all sorts of contraptions to make my life more comfortable. Blankets with sleeves, alarm clocks that gently encourage me to wake up. There were even fancy stepladders to help my old dog climb into bed with me, all of which my minimalistic missionary heart found unnecessary.
In my previous life (life before missions) I was a public
school teacher. And it’s not uncommon in the world of education to find
old teachers who are unwilling to adapt. They have developed their system
of teaching, more for survival than success, and are unwilling to incorporate
new techniques no matter how effective they are. Adapting to change and
including new methodology causes discomfort and it takes more energy and
thought because it requires learning and real work. Let not the church be
lazy, instead let's be willing to work to wrestle and strain leaving it all on
the field as we labor alongside the Lord of the Harvest. Try to embrace Spirit
led change.
The proverbial winds of change arise again with each new generation as they seek to practice their faith in a way that’s relevant to them. George Bernard Shaw expresses perfectly the complaints the next generation has in regards to the church, “The only man I know who behaves sensibly is my tailor; he takes my measurements anew each time he sees me. The rest go on with their old measurements and expect me to fit them.“ We the church, could learn so much from the wise tailor who understood that he needed to take new measurements. We can’t expect the next generation or culture or subculture to fit the current model of church no matter how attached we are to it.
I realize this is difficult for some, for we simply love the now decaying model of church. After all it worked for me and I turned out all right. Right? Nostalgia can get in the way of Spirit led change. As the French poet Anatole once lamented, “All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter another.” Are you willing to leave a part of yourself behind to discover a new facet of God and life and church?
Although our God is unchanging he is a God of change. He has changed my heart, mind and my future. He is anything but dead and our lives and churches must reflect that. Navigating change requires greater intimacy with God and that always produces lasting change in our life. Sometimes we are unable to budge our circumstances but we can with God’s help transform how we think and respond to all of life’s changes. “Change” it’s more than a political campaign slogan it’s a reality. Embrace it or your as good as dead.
