BEREAN YOUNG ADULTS

on why we don't have a young adult service.

Part of being in a role that has a certain amount of decision making inherent in it is that at most times a segment of the people you work with will disagree with you.  That comes with the job.  I think that I could say confidently that even on staff there is a range of opinions on how to "do church" - phrase I dislike and could probably become an entire blog post itself.  When you get people together there will be disagreement.

One of the areas in the young adult ministry at LBC where the most passionate debate takes place revolves around creating a young adult worship experience.  Take a moment to browse around the web and look at what other churches are doing with young adults and you'll find a lot that have young adult services that occur at different times, and often, in different places than the church's regular services that are intended for the entire group of attenders.  It's a popular model and it often has impressive results - niched worship experiences attract a large crowd.

We have been pretty strong in our opposition to this approach but, I can assure you, it hasn't necessarily been easy.  A big part of me is pretty enticed by the idea of having a large group of young adults gathering separately from the larger body and becoming, for all intents and purposes, a church unto itself.  From an ego point of view, as a pastor this is attractive because I could become a head pastor of sorts without even applying for the job!  On top of that we could make a name for ourselves as a church that has a pretty sweet young adult service.  Do I think that young adults would come to this type of thing - yeah, I think a lot would (many would rather not but on the whole I think this approach has proven itself).

So, why don't we do it?  A few reasons:

1. It might be easy but we don't think it's best.  What is easy (even what we want) is not always what we need.  Church splits are often predicated on this type of thinking - "I don't really like this aspect of our church, we disagree with this philosophy, so let's start our own gig."  That type of thinking is easy, but not necessarily profitable in the long run.  In many ways the challenge and genius of the Church is fighting against that very temptation: to strive, and keep striving, for unity.  This runs contrary to our human nature and for that reason Paul knew he had to remind the Ephesians of its importance: "...until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God." (Eph. 4:13).
2. It can foster a consumer mentality.  In a church the size of ours it is already difficult to fight against the drift towards consumerism. We have dozens upon dozens of options in order to provide people with the tools they need to grow spiritually.  The difficulty with this is that we must fight to see this as a benefit and not an expectation.  When it becomes an expectation then we start to think of ourselves as clients and expect the church to provide me what I want - otherwise I'll take my business elsewhere.  The moment we cross the line into this type of thinking, the game is essentially over.
3. It shrinks our view of God.  It is good for me to worship around people who are different than me. A couple of weeks ago I was near a "swayer" during worship and a couple weeks before that I was near someone who liked to raise their arms in worship.  These two expressions of worship are far from my experience, I'd prefer we all be stoics and just think really deeply during worship.  It is good for me to be around people who display that God wires each of us differently and, in his creativity, he allows for an unlimited number of expressions of worship.  That's good thing for me to see.
4. It leads us towards what C.S. Lewis called, "chronological snobbery."  Lewis used the term to describe the fact that the current generation always thinks that their moment in history is superior to those that have preceded theirs. I think that this is our tendency as the younger church generation.  If I neglect gathering together with 8 year olds and 80 year olds then I miss out on the richness that is to be gained when I see those people who have walked with God twice as long as I've been alive and those who are just starting to learn who Jesus is.  God certainly wants to create a movement in our generation, but not at the expense or in spite of the faithful who have come before us.  Worshipping with them reminds us of this.
5. It creates one more church thing to do.  Some would argue against the above points by saying they'd do both - "big church" and a young adult service but this runs contrary to exactly what we're trying to do: impact our world for Christ and His Kingdom. Why gather for another worship service that will be a mirror of those that took place on Sunday morning when we could be getting together with co-workers, resting at home, connecting with neighbors, mingling with non-Christians at restaurants and coffee shops and bars, serving at a soup kitchen, etc.?  If there is any group of people that has the freedom to be "out there," it's us.

So, these are just a few reasons. 

The challenge for young adults is that of the departure from college and that comes with a lot of growing pangs! The movement out of a campus atmosphere where community is basically built into your life, the movement into the work place and the 9-5 realities that come with it, the movement towards paying bills, balancing a check book, etc.  The same struggle occurs at church - the difficult move from a junior high, high school, and college ministry into the life of the body at large (where it's easy to feel lost!).  I went through it and understand the difficulty, but, post-college, we believe it is a pain worth fighting through.

Ultimately, the church was intended to be multigenerational, multiethnic, cross socio-economic boundaries, and, because of these abnormalities (where else do you see this), the world would look upon the Church with wonder and awe.

a few thoughts on our generation.

I say "our generation" loosely - I'm 30 and so I know that I can't speak for 36 year olds or 24 year olds in any definitive way...so, take this post for what it is, the opinions of one person who is right on the edge of both Gen X & Y.

I think that we all get a little tired of hearing about how young adults are irresponsible, afraid of commitment, too idealistic, etc.  I know there have been times when I've actually said some things on this blog in support of this point of view - generalizations are never altogether off base.  But, one must be careful when making them.

We get tired of the bad rap and some of us might even get a little irritable when we hear it.  If that's you, you would hate Jean Twenge's book, Generation Me.  Here's a few tasty tidbits from her:

• We are too confident that everything will work out just fine - "In a recent survey, a stunning 98% of college freshmen agreed with the statement, 'I am sure that one day I will get to where I want to be in life." pg. 78
• We have unrealistic goals - 19% of college freshmen say they will earn a Ph.D. and 12% say they will earn an M.D.  Twenge then says, "Grand ambitions indeed, since the number of Ph.D.'s granted each year is only 4% of the bachelor's degrees given, and M.D.'s only 1%. Thus about 4 in 5 aspiring Ph.D.'s will be disappointed, and a whopping 11 in 12 would-be doctors will not reach their goals." pg. 79
• We expect to be wealthy - "In 1999, teens predicted that they would be earning, on average, $75,000 a year by the time they were 30. The average income of a 30-year-old that year? -$27,000." pg. 79
• This one is particularly biting: she argues our career choices are motivated, ultimately, by selfishness - "Many young people today don't want to commit to a career and stay with it because they'd like to find exactly the right job for them. Jeffrey Arnett, author of Emerging Adulthood, says, 'They're not just looking for a job. They want something that's more like a calling, that's going to be an expression of their identity.' Overall, it's the pursuit of individual wants at its most undiluted." pg. 98

Okay, c'mon Twenge, lay off a little.  That was my first thought...until I opened the September/October 2009 edition of Relevant, a magazine that makes sure Christians are just that (and yeah, I do subscribe to it).  On page 72 of this edition is an article on what to do if you're not going back to school, "starting with the most orthodox and progressing to the more imaginative."  Here's a few ideas (from the article):

• Get a job - this one is cast in a pretty negative light, described as unglamorous and regular.  Who wants that?
• Do Fun School - the idea here is that maybe you have an inkling to become a sushi chef...so, do it and maybe one day you can make money.
• Travel - "It's the world, and it's all out there waiting for you to see it and be it."
• Become a Citizen Journalist - "You have a laptop. You have a camera. You have a cell phone. You are a citizen journalist!"
• Start a Business - "Start writing and doodling about things you'd like to do...Write faster and bigger.  Draw some arrows. Think about marketing and pricing...You have a business plan."

So, I don't want to be the downer here, but as I read this article I wondered what ever happened to good old productivity - starting in the mail room and through hardwork and diligence, working one's way into the job they would want? Not trying to be a dream crusher here - I know a lot of talented people, people who have started businesses, who have free-lanced, who have written a book and been published before the age of 30...

I guess I'm just wondering if sometimes we're our own worst enemy, whether our approach to life makes us easy targets for Twenge and others.  I always think of my grandpa, he reminds me often that he worked because that's what people do, he never stopped to think about whether it was fun or not.  Maybe that's a luxury we now enjoy because of others like him.  And, maybe I'm overthinking again.

following the retreat.

It has been a little over a week and a half since thirty of us traveled to Camp Rivercrest in Fremont, NE for a weekend of retreat.  One of the clear struggles we all must face now that we've been home for some time is trying to bring a retreat mentality into our everyday lives. 

Here is the introduction to our weekend and a reminder of why retreating is important.

Why do we retreat?

There are a number of reasons people/churches/organizations take retreats.  Here are a few dictionary definitions of retreat:

1.     The forced or strategic withdrawal of an army or an armed force from action.

2.     The act of withdrawing into safety or seclusion.

3.     A place of refuge.

All of these definitions capture why we have organized a retreat.  In lives like we live, surrounded by noise and the constant clamor of the urgent, filled with new media that allows us to be connected at all times and in all places, in a culture where the clock is both king and queen, it is easy to become weary.  In lives like we live it is important to intentionally withdraw into the quiet place, into solitude, for a refreshment of soul but also of vision and purpose. 

Even Jesus, God himself, understood the importance of such times…

    “But Jesus himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.” Luke 5:16
    “Jesus withdrew again to the mountain again to the mountain by himself.” John 6:15

One thing is sure, the point of retreat is not to become separatists—to elude the world so as to not sin—this was the mistake of the church in the not so distant past.  Ultimately, the point of retreat is advancement, but advancement with God.

If I had to use two words to describe the intent of our time together they would be these: slow down.  Slow down and look for God.  Slow down and connect deeply with him. Slow down and listen to how he is moving in your life.

josh's place is the place to watch husker games.

A trend has been established...I think Josh is trying to serve himself up as a rival to Memorial Stadium's 300 consecutive sellouts.  This is Josh's 4th consecutive Husker watch party at his crib.  Check out the Calendar for details.  Also, just because Husker youtube videos never get old...I'll include the best one I've ever found:

the launch of men's fraternity.

This morning we launched the second year of Men's Fraternity at Lincoln Berean Church.  It's a pretty amazing thing to make that drowsy drive into the parking lot at 6 a.m. and see a parking lot full of guys who are making a sacrifice in order to learn and grow.  Here's a picture of our time this morning:

Along with breakfast we also had a special video from Robert Lewis, the founder of Men's Fraternity.

Finally...it's not too late to join us.  Our year starts in earnest next week at 6:10 a.m. in the Upper Room.

the rationality of our beliefs.

There were a lot of good things said this weekend - as there always are.  From my perspective, however, the most striking part of Bryan's message was the bit in the middle when he reminded us all of the strong foundation that we stand on when it comes to the reliability of the Christian Scriptures and the Christian faith.

 Often, the reliability of the Christian Scriptures are called into question by many who suggest that what we have in our Bibles was received in some willy-nilly fashion.  It is suggested that Paul probably didn't write most of his so called letters, that the Gospels are all made up, that Jesus actually married Mary Magdalene and had a daughter and lived in France for a while (don't you know that Leonardo DaVinci proves all this!!??).

Every Christmas and Easter CNN, The Discovery Channel, the History Channel and others pump out documentary after documentary seemingly disproving the reliability of the Scriptures and, therefore, the rationality of our faith.  The more one studies this type of thing, however, the more you learn that viewpoints like this are fueled more by a desire to live without God than an authentic search for truth.

 Bryan touched on this as he noted that as far as ancient documents go, there is no doubt that the New Testament is strongly supported by numerous manuscripts that validate its authenticity.  Here's an example:

No one discounts the validity of Plato's writing - most scholars would agree that Plato wrote what we think he wrote.  However, the amazing thing is that our earliest copies of Plato's writings were written 1200 years after he actually wrote them.  Contrast that with the NT copies we have that were written less than 100 years after they originated and you have strong evidence that the NT has been transmitted to us in a manner we can trust.  And this piece of evidence is just the tip of the iceberg.  A helpful book in this regard is Lee Strobel's The Case For Christ, pick it up if you want an interesting read.

Our beliefs are based on a reliable book, the Bible, and so when Paul says this to Timothy, "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness," we can bet the house on that.  What we believe and how grounded we believe our beliefs to be, makes all the difference in the world.  Here's what Dallas Willard has to say about it,

"Similarly, if I do believe in God, I will tend to act as if he exists.
If I believe that the Bible and the church are unique resources
of reliable information about life and well-being, I will tend to
honor them and give them careful attention, making them a part
of my life. If I believe they are not, I will avoid them
or even attack them."

 

men. let's get after it.

This Wednesday marks the beginning of Men's Fraternity's second year at Lincoln Berean.  Last year it pretty remarkable to see about 400 men gathering at 6 a.m. on Wednesday mornings to invest in their own growth.  No doubt, each of us could have benefited from watching these videos on our own, at a time that was convenient to us...but then we would have missed out on the motivational aspect of seeing 400 men gather together.  That, in and of itself, was a significant statement.

For those men out there reading this, I want to encourage you to join us this Wednesday for our kickoff breakfast.  Here's a link to some of the topics that will be covered this year: Men's Fraternity, The Great Adventure.

Now, I know there are some arguments against coming to this, let me address those.

1. 6 a.m. on Wednesday morning is really early.
Yes, it is.

2. I'll deal with this stuff when I'm married or have kids.
You could do that, in fact, I think all of us will need to at some point.  For single guys I think that the benefit is that you can get a huge head start on this stuff and you might be able to avoid taking some of your bad habits with you into marriage (wish I would have done that).

3. 6 a.m. on Wednesday morning is really early.
I know.

4. I'll miss some sleep.
Seriously? Scores of people get up earlier than this to work on their physique, this is a lot more important.

5. I'll be a mess at work.
That will make two of us. On the other hand, I think God can step into the gap and energize us when sacrifices like this are made...seriously.

I grant it's early. It is. I know that Saturday morning around 9 a.m. would be more convenient. It would be. But, this is when it's offered and for those men who have kids, they'll be thankful that we're not taking their dad away from them on Saturday morning.  Those of us without kids can make the sacrifice for their sake.

Hope you'll consider it, you won't regret it.

huskers vs. va tech.

Here we go again.  Josh Brokering has officially become THE place to watch a Husker game.  Once again this week he has invited everyone to join him.  Check out the calendar page for info.  If you need to be reminded of why this game matters...just watch this:

wisdom on a starbucks cup?

Recently Starbucks cups featured quotes from customers, actors, authors, and celebrities.  I came across this quote from a customer and found there to be a lot of wisdom in it.

"The irony of commitment is that it's deeply liberating - in work, in play, in love. The act frees you from the tyranny of your internal critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself up and parade around as rational hesitation. To commit is to remove your head as the barrier to your life."  Anne Morris, Starbucks customer

spiritual formation retreat.

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned a retreat that is open to 20 & 30somethings at Camp Rivercrest in Fremont, NE.  Here are the details: