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From Lukewarm to Hot Christians, part 2

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Claude Goodby Claude Good, Souderton congregation

The Hidden Agenda Behind the Worm Project

So what is a Lukewarm Christian? Francis Chan wrote a book called Crazy Love. In it he describes the characteristics of a Lukewarm Christian: Lukewarm Christians love others but not as much as they love themselves; their love often comes with strings attached; they give money to charities and the church as long as it doesn’t impinge on their standard of living; they choose what is popular over what is right; they are thankful for their luxuries and comforts but they rarely consider trying to give as much as possible to the poor; they want to do the bare minimum to be “good enough;” they do not live by faith; their lives wouldn’t look much different if they suddenly stopped believing in God.

The author comes to the sobering conclusion that there is no such thing as a “Lukewarm Christian.” It is an oxymoron, meaning that the two words cancel each other out. If Jesus says that He will spit them out of his mouth, it means that they are really not His followers.

If you know you are “lukewarm” and you’d like to let God light a fire in you, the Bible most certainly has the answer. It starts with the words, “Seek FIRST the Kingdom of God….” I am told that in the original “to seek” has more of the meaning of “to crave.” Anyone who has an addiction to drugs or alcohol knows what “to crave” means. Some who crave chocolate or sugary foods may even understand – you gotta have it!

An earnest seeking for God is bound to create a love for him and his son Jesus Christ and we naturally want to obey the command, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your mind.”  We can tell from human experience that if we are in love with someone the easiest thing to do is what we know that person wants. The same is true when we truly love Jesus.

If you are lukewarm, let your imagination run wild. Imagine yourself in a beautiful state, surrounded with deep love and filled with gratitude. God is magnificently creative; just think of what he can do with dust! Three times he tells us that “the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living being” (Gen. 2:7). Try standing in front of a mirror and in wonder and astonishment take note of what God can do with dust.  We all have the attractive choice of being made and remade into in His image.

One of my delightful memories from Mexico City is walking with all our children to the grocery store through scenic back streets. Once when we were almost home, I looked around and in dismay said, “Where’s Rob?!” He was our youngest and about five years-old. We dashed back to the store and looked all over for him. As we returned to the street, we saw a kindly lady leading Rob by the hand and saying, “Is this your house?”  Rob would tearfully say, “No.” and then they would go to the next house with the same question and answer. You can imagine our great relief and gratitude to that kind woman when Rob was back with us again.

So again I say to all of us, “I just want us all to be together forever.”  I want us all to know God and to love God and to care for others so that they may also know God and love God and care for others.  Let’s all be together forever, red-hot Christians, becoming more and more like Jesus.

Read From Lukewarm to Hot Christians, part 1

From Lukewarm to Hot Christians, part 1

by

Claude Goodby Claude Good, Souderton congregation

The Hidden Agenda Behind the Worm Project

Recently I had a visit from a friend. Our conversation turned to the pain of the world. Much to my surprise he broke out weeping; his weeping was caused by his deep concern for the people still living in the pain of darkness. He asked for a tissue. The next day I found the crunched up tissue and was about to chuck it in the garbage. But I suddenly thought, “I can’t throw this away because it holds tears that I believe are sacred to God.”  So I put it in a special place to remind me of how much God wants us to care for those living in darkness as well as the poor who are hungry and sick.

While living in Mexico, we sometimes took our small children to visit zoos or museums.  There were so many people around us we had to keep alert to see that we stayed together. But little Ceci made it easier. She would anxiously watch to see that none of her siblings got out of our sight; she really wanted us to stay together!

So how does that story relate to the hidden agenda behind the Worm Project?

In the beginning it appeared the Worm Project might never get off the ground. We couldn’t find people interested in distributing the tablets. I was nearly ready to give up. But I had another reason to keep trying. Just like our daughter’s deep concern for her biological family, I really wanted all of us as Mennonites to be together forever just like we want our families to be with us for eternity. All of us are part of a larger family; my prayer is that as many of us as absolutely possible will be together throughout eternity along with all the redeemed ones from every tribe and nation.  And if we are to be together forever, we must know God.

So what could be done that might encourage us lukewarm Christians to be hungry to know God? In Jer.22:10, God told the son of Josiah in strong terms that he was only thinking of himself by building a fancy palace and making people work for nothing. But his father Josiah, God said, had defended the cause of the poor and needy. AND THEN GOD MAKESTHE VERY CRUCIAL STATEMENT, “Is that not what it means to know me?” Caring for the poor is one way to know God.

Many Mennonites are frugal. Combine that with the fact that $100 will treat 7,000 sickly children, ridding them of worms (1.4 cents each tablet)–that is bargain basement prices for those who know how to pinch pennies.  We like to say: “Little is much if God is in it.” And we know God IS in it because he says, “Spend yourself/pour yourself out on behalf of the hungry.”  For those who obey, he promises that we will become like “a well-watered garden…. or a spring that never fails” (Isa.58:10 -12). The Spirit of God tends to build a real compassion within us as we realize how many can be helped with our resources. Lukewarm American Christians need an increased awareness of the pain and darkness in the world. Knowing God intimately is the key to having God’s caring heart within us for those living in that pain and darkness.

Thankfully, God, the “Divine Coordinator,” supernaturally inspired many of our people to respond with love and care for the children with worms. God, the Divine Multiplier, has multiplied our gifts in a marvelous way. Well over 100 million tablets have gone out. He has also brought together a highly motivated Board and a team of Partners who are overseeing the distributions in many countries. The passion of both these groups of red-hot Christians insures that the program will continue.

Preventing Gun Violence

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Gun Violence Pastors BreakfastDrick Boyd, professor at Eastern University, and Fred Kauffman from Mennonite Central Committee (both from West Philadelphia congregation) shared stories of gun violence and redemption and encouraged leaders to engage their congregations around the topic of gun violence and gun control.  There are deeper issues in our culture, Boyd said, and getting rid of guns won’t remove those deeper issues, but “at least we’ll live long enough to address them.”

Kauffman and Boyd are available to come speak at your congregation on the topic of preventing gun violence; they also recommend the book America and Its Guns.

Intercessory Prayer about Gun Violence

Listen to the podcast:

[podcast]http://www.mosaicmennonites.org/media-uploads/mp3/Gun-Violence.mp3[/podcast]

Seasons change: a New Year's reflection

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Vietnamese New Yearby Emily Ralph, eralphservant@mosaicmennonites.org

I hate the cold.  I mean, really hate the cold.  Sure, snow is beautiful resting on the barn roof or lightly coating the hedge, but when it’s on my car, the road, or me, enough is enough.

I’ve found myself this winter dreaming about moving to Hawaii.  I’ve never been to Hawaii, but on TV it looks like the sun is always shining and a gentle ocean breeze always keeps it at a comfortable temperature for flip-flops and shorts.  They don’t have winter in Hawaii. That sounds just about perfect to me.

I can’t imagine life in C.S. Lewis’ fictional land of Narnia, held captive by an evil queen’s spell, always winter (and never Christmas).  It was an unchanging reality, the way it had always been and the way it always would be.  I wonder how they must have felt when they saw their home beginning to thaw, when green grass began to emerge from the melting snow, rivers began rushing, trees began blooming, and the chill in the air was replaced by a breeze that smelled of soil and warmth.

And then, how must they have felt their first winter after the land’s rightful king, Aslan, won back the kingdom?  Did the first snowflake send a chill up their spines?  Did the first winter’s frost send them into a panic—oh, no, not this again?  Because Aslan didn’t bring eternal spring to replace the eternal winter; instead, he put the world right, returning Narnia to the rhythm of seasons.

Last Sunday, I joined the Vietnamese Gospel congregation in Allentown, Pa. for their annual Tet (New Year) celebration.  Among Scripture readings and songs welcoming the rain and possibilities of a new year, Pastor Hien and his wife Nga performed a song called, “Only Jesus Brings the Spring.”  I was struck by this simple statement of faith, a reminder that Jesus, through whom the world was created, set our seasons in motion.

And how wonderful that the Vietnamese Tet occurred the Sunday before Lent this year!  Lent (which means “spring” or, literally, the “lengthening of days”), begins with ashes and ends with lilies, a reminder that this season will pass and a new, glorious season is on its way, a season that only Jesus can bring.

Seasons and change aren’t necessarily a bad thing.  On a very fundamental level, they remind us that whatever we’re going through, however challenging our life is, whatever seems impossible or insurmountable, this, too, shall pass.  Just as the people of Narnia heard the trickle of melting snow and murmured in awe, “Aslan is on the move!” we, too, see signs of change in our lives and know that Jesus is lengthening our days, bringing spring to our winter, offering the promise of resurrection and the hope of a world that one day will be made right again.

Seasons change.  Continual spring or summer could end up feeling as confining as the snow and cold of winter.  Just as winter prepares the land for the fruitfulness of planting and harvest, the challenging seasons of our lives shape our character and prepare us for what’s coming next.  Seasons of rest prepare us for seasons of action.  Seasons of learning prepare us for seasons of teaching.  Seasons of pain prepare us for seasons of strength.

Seasons change.  This Lent, I’m giving up my longing for Hawaii and looking ahead to the promise of a spring that only Jesus can bring.

Reading God’s word after 25 years

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Tarun with his wife Suniti and daughter Tripti.
Tarun with his wife Suniti and daughter Tripti.

by Rebecca Hendricks and Karen Moyer, Rocky Ridge

January 19, 2013 was a day of celebration for a lifetime of work when a new translation of the New Testament in a people’s heart language was dedicated in Korba, India.  The story of the connection between the translator, Tarun Gardia, and families and churches in Franconia Conference is a divine drama of God’s amazing leading to accomplish his purposes.

It began when Tarun Gardia came to the USA in 1987 to live with Wilbur and Becki Hendricks as participants in the Mennonite International Visitor Exchange Program (IVEP) which sought to promote international understanding (he was assigned as a classroom aide to Quakertown Christian School.)

While Tarun was here, Hendricks encouraged him to participate in a Bible memory program, which opened Tarun’s eyes to see that a real relationship with the God of creation involved his heart.  He acknowledged the impact of this exercise, saying, “The Christian love there touched my heart and I gave my life to our Lord.  They sent me to [a missions conference where] I heard a Wycliffe Bible Translator speak….  Later they took me to North Carolina to the JAARS Center (a partner in Bible translation).  Visiting the Museum of Alphabets at JAARS was the key factor that finally led me to translation as God’s plan for my life.  While visiting the museum, I went to the Indian language section where I saw a hand-written verse in my own Chhattisgarhi language pasted on the wall.  I was told that the Bible needs to be translated in that language.”

Following his one-year IVEP assignment, Indian and American Christian friends found the necessary support for Tarun to attend seminary in South India and then linguistic study at the Wycliffe center in Singapore.  Tarun then returned to the JAARS center in North Carolina, where he received computer training, a skill which would greatly reduce translation time.  It was during this time that Rocky Ridge Mennonite Church (Quakertown, Pa.) commissioned him to do this translation and took on his full financial support.  Following a language survey, he began actual translation work in 1996.

NTs being distributed at dedication
The Chhattisgarhi New Testaments are distributed.

We marvel at the journey God planned for Tarun, a boy from a small village in India who trained to be a teacher.  God took this village school teacher out of his comfort zone to a foreign country where he lived with a family who loved God and then loved Tarun into God’s kingdom.  Those years convinced Tarun that not only he, but millions of others, needed God’s Word in their language so that they could become children of God and share this exciting life of purpose and value.

In January, a delegation of four individuals from Rocky Ridge congregation journeyed to India to participate in the ceremony celebrating the completion of Tarun’s New Testament translation.  The team flew to Raipur, a city of 1.3 million, where Tarun, his wife Suniti and daughter Tripti (18) live and worked on the translation.  The Chhattisgarhi language in this region is the purest spoken form; there are 15 million Chhattisgarhi speakers in the whole state.

On Friday, January 18, the team and the Gardias traveled four hours by train to the town of Korba where the dedication was held with three hundred people in attendance.  Entering the courtyard gates, we were overcome with emotion as we noticed the stacks of Bibles ready for blessing and distribution.

The program began with praise music and scripture songs in the Chhattisgarhi language led by several congregations’ worship choirs.  Representatives from Wycliffe Bible Translation India and the team from Rocky Ridge honored Tarun and Todd Hendricks brought greetings from his parents, Wilbur and Becki.

Following the program, people flocked to the front to purchase copies of the New Testament.  When Karen asked one young man why he was buying two Bibles, he replied, “I got one for myself and one for my older brother.  All these years I have been reading the Bible in Hindi, but I want to tell others about God in a language they can comprehend.  This will bring them strength.”

Pastor Ravi Baksh and Karen Moyer talk with a young man who purchased two New Testaments--one for himself and one for his brother.
John Kurian (Director-India, The Wycliffe Seed Company) and Karen Moyer talk with young man who purchased two New Testaments–one for himself and one for his brother.

That evening several of us sat with Tarun and asked questions about his journey to completing the New Testament. Tarun reflected, “ Sometimes I was discouraged as I was the only one working on the translation, but two of my uncles would encourage me quite often to keep on going.”

We were awed to experience God’s working in one man and his family’s life and their dedication to answer God’s call.  Even when he was discouraged, he was committed to finishing the task, he said, because of his desire “for my people to be saved and have God’s word in their own language, to speak to their own heart.”

Rocky Ridge congregation invites your continued prayer for Tarun and his family in the next phase of their ministry as they seek ways of incorporating this “heart-language” translation into the daily lives of the Chhattisgarhi speakers. Check out Rocky Ridge’s Facebook photo album.

Reflections on building an intercultural relationship

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Urban Promise at Souderton
A team of interns from Urban Promise leads singing at Souderton congregation. Photo by Emily Ralph.

As a church seeking to connect with the mission of God in the world, it has been exciting to connect with the ministry of Urban Promise in Camden, NJ. Initially, several of our college students served as summer interns and Bruce Main and some of their interns came to a worship service on a Sunday morning. But this past year, the Senior High youth group did a week of service in Camden and for many of the youth it was life changing. Relationships were established. They connected with what God was doing in the city and the invitation was given to come to Souderton for an exchange visit. Seeing this come together on January 20th was encouraging and confirmed the truth that mission in the Kingdom of God is more about building relationships than it is about programs.

–Pastor Gerry Clemmer, Souderton congregation

Urban Promise--Carlee Moyer
Carlee Moyer (left), a senior in Souderton congregation’s youth group, participated in a summer school camp. What she saw and experienced led her to consider teaching in the inner city someday.

I didn’t know what to expect walking through the doors into camp that first day—it was a huge eye opener. As Caucasian teens, we went from being the majority back at home in Souderton to being the minority in Camden!  This gave me a sense of how other people view the world; I experienced what it feels like to not fit in. Each morning we had devotions and the main topic that they kept coming back to was about judging other people.  In Camden, I tried to remember that I have no idea what these kids are going through and they know nothing about me either. If you have an open heart to everyone, you will not only see happiness in others, but happiness in yourself also.

Coming back home and starting my junior year in high school, something had changed.  I tried to take a broader look at myself as a person. I have become more aware of how I treat people and think about how God would want me to treat others. Even though the children that were in the camps were young, they still taught me something that will stay with me forever.   Not a day goes by where I don’t think about the people that made a huge impact on my life.

–Jillian Moyer, junior

Urban Promise
An Urban Promise day camp. Photo by Carlee Moyer.

Wow! Where do I even begin to talk about the experience our youth group had at Urban Promise?  One of the things that fascinated me most was Urban Promise’s “street leader” program. This program is for the older children (9th-12th grade) who have gone to the camps before, but are too old to be a “camper”. They help run the camp and facilitate activities. It was great to see how these kids worked their way up through the program and are now given responsibility. As a teacher, I notice that kids rise to higher levels of maturity when they are given a responsibility, especially when that responsibility is to take care of younger children.

I know many of our youth want to go back and visit our friends from Urban Promise and some have showed interest in working there for a summer. What an amazing and life changing experience it was for our entire group!  Urban Promise is truly ushering in God’s Kingdom in a very real way.

–Elyse Hackman, youth leader

The good news is still breaking

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Steve Krissby Stephen Kriss, director of leadership cultivation

“After a sermon like that, I just want to cry,” commented octogenarian Roma Ruth, reflecting on Salford intern John Tyson’s debut sermon on Sunday.  John is an Eastern Mennonite University and Christopher Dock High School grad studying now at Princeton Seminary.  His internship represents the best of flourishing conference, congregation, and community relationships.  He is learning alongside his old high school history teacher, Joe Hackman, who is now Salford’s lead pastor.   I’m serving as John’s official supervisor for the year, a role I’m happy to fill as the conference’s director of leadership cultivation.

Roma’s family helped to start the small mission church in Somerset County, Pa., where my family first connected with the Mennonites.  Now, almost thirty years later, I am the one cultivating new generations of leaders.  In the seven years I have worked for the conference, it has been both a challenge and a joy to do this kind of work, helping a historic community navigate into the realities of next-generation leadership.  I’ve worked with dozens of interns, students, pastors.   I continue to witness amazing and sometimes disturbing things.  It’s not easy to be a next-generation leader in the church.  There are lots of bang-ups and bruises.   What amazes me, though, is the willingness of young people to invest in our broken but beautiful communities in spite of, and sometimes because of, this very brokenness.

Roma told me that her tears were from the realization that John’s sermon spoke powerfully to issues of the Good News, justice, and peace that are close to her heart.  She recognized in the sermon yet another turning of the page.  It’s a gracious realization that God continues to call forth new leaders in nearly 300-year-old congregations in a half-millennia-old tradition in ways that are both resonant and discordant with the past, but nonetheless harmonizing with the way of Christ across the generations.

I am becoming more and more aware that the Spirit is increasingly calling leaders across ethnic lines, calling women, calling people born outside of the Mennonite fold into our contexts of worship and ministry.  These men and women are highly skilled, highly committed, willing to be vulnerable, willing to contribute without thought of compensation, often living somewhere between patient and zealous, believing in both constancy and change.  Of course there are still areas of growth, but overall the gifts of next-generation leaders are like the gifts of the magi—appropriate, overwhelming, full of mystery and grace.

It is fitting that John’s sermon was on Epiphany, a time of celebrating the gifts of those coming from another place, marking the inbreaking of salvation, wise to the ways of the world, bearing with them what they hope will witness to a beautiful new beginning embedded in a real and historic story.   Our community’s challenge is to have the courage, wherewithal, and imagination, along with the spiritual rootedness, to understand and celebrate that God is still with us and that, as John said in his sermon and Roma affirmed this last Sunday at Salford, “the good news is still breaking.”

Are you a tourist or a pilgrim?

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Youth Leadership Retreatby John Stoltzfus, Conference Youth Minister

For many youth leaders and youth, this is the time that preparations begin in earnest for summer trips. Many are planning for the Mennonite Convention in Phoenix while other groups are planning service trips local and beyond. Are we preparing our youth to go as pilgrims or tourists?

At a recent conference gathering, Elizabeth Soto Albrecht, moderator elect for Mennonite Church USA (MC USA), spoke of her plans for a pilgrimage this summer. In solidarity with those who may be unable to attend convention because of immigration restrictions, she will take the opportunity to visit various places and churches along the way during the time of convention. What if all of us would consider our upcoming youth trips as pilgrimages?

A pilgrimage speaks of an expectation to meet God and to be changed along the way. A pilgrim resolves that the one who returns will not be the same person that left. A tourist may go with a more consumerist approach primarily looking to accumulate for personal gain. For a tourist, much more attention is given to the outer details of the trip: what is packed, where to visit, what entertainment to see, and what souvenirs to buy with little reflection on the inner journey of the soul. Pilgrims go on pilgrimage not necessarily to see something, but to receive something: renewed spirit, greater devotion to God, a new sense of community, and a wider world view of God’s kingdom.

Youth Visioning EventI wonder if it would be beneficial to remind our youth that we travel not as tourists but as pilgrims. This mind set is established prior to departure. When we are making our packing lists, pilgrims should be reminded that the most important thing we take with us on the pilgrimage is receptivity to God’s presence all along the journey.

The preparation and the follow-up can be as important as the trip itself. What makes the difference between being a tourist and a pilgrim is a sense of openness and expectancy. Too often we decide beforehand what a trip should be like and we judge it by our own needs and desires. It may prove to be disappointing or satisfactory but it will rarely be the occasion of some new revelation or growth in our life of faith. As leaders we need to cultivate within ourselves and our youth the openness to follow a different way.

For those planning to go to convention this summer here are some ideas of ways to do things differently:

  • Along with raising money to attend the convention, invest in the DREAMer Fund set up by MC USA. The goal of the fund is to help undocumented young people pay the fee required to apply for a deferment.
  • Partner with another congregation who may not have the resources in order to make the pilgrimage together.
  • Seek to visit and form a relationship with an immigrant congregation in your area in order share stories and increase understanding.
  • Invest the congregation in praying for the youth before, during and after the pilgrimage.
  • Encourage all the participants to keep a journal during the trip. Provide for regular opportunities along the way for group reflection and sharing.
  • In the months after the convention, take time for reflection on what was learned. Be prepared to make changes and respond to new commitments.