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8/31/2006 List of postings: Jun '06 to Aug '06During this period the blog recorded over 4600 page views. Thanks everyone for reading - and for having patience during CCCOWE in July, and the laptop failure in August!
A prominent feature of this quarter's posts was a series on culture and ministry (5, 7, 11, 13, 15, 31 July) - an issue that probably needs to be discussed more openly in Chinese churches. I believe that this leads to a lot of unnecessary conflicts and hurt in our churches. Feel free to use them as discussion starters in your ministry teams!
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
[ PS: during this period, which posts were your favourite? which posts did you feel strongly about? ] 8/29/2006 Team buildingTeam building games have been used in business training for quite some time - but it's interesting to see the different approach that business leaders have to them.
The secular world would say that what you need to do is build that commonality between people. You need to get people together and play team building games with them in order to fashion a team, a unit out of the isolated individuals. We are the ones who create a team.
And then, once the team feeling is there, then we get people to do things as a team. And maybe it's building a new piece of software, or building a bridge, or creating a better mousetrap.
But New Testament Christianity is very different from the secular world. When Paul writes to the churches encouraging them into ministry, he doesn’t build unity. He doesn’t make people feel one with each other. No, instead what he does is he simply highlights the unity that already exists between people because of the gospel!
If you like, instead of Paul being the team builder, the Lord Jesus Christ is the team builder par excellence. He has already built the team - all that Paul is doing now is pointing out what Christ has done - the unity that is there - and he’s calling people to live it out.
In Romans 12 Paul says that ‘we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another’. Paul highlights that we are already one - present tense! That like it or not, we do belong one to another. That is already true of us! And then he goes on to tell them what they should now do with this unity: they should use their different gifts for the good of the whole body.
The first time I ran team building games at our leaders’ retreat, people really loved them. But when we got back from camp, I felt compelled to say to people: "look, we didn’t play those games in order to create unity with each other. No, the unity is already there because of the gospel. What we are doing is just uncovering, and practicing, and exercising that unity that’s already there. A unity that’s already forged between us because of the gospel."
Now you might think this is just semantics, but it is actually quite important. Because in ministry, we do some pretty difficult things. We tell close friends of ours that they are doing the wrong thing. We try to do the loving thing for others, and sometimes that can take a lot of effort and long nights of preparation. And no amount of team building games will build enough team feeling to get people to do some of the things that we want them to do when they serving self-sacrificially!
Not only that, it will get people thinking that they need to look for commonality with people. If there isn't enough commonality between them and others in a church, then they'll just move on to find another church - then another church - then another... And this is actually a denial of the gospel. It imagines that the unity forged by the Lord Jesus Christ is inconsequential, and not as important as the commonality of what your favourite band is. Or what sort of movies you like. This of course is ludicrous - but this is what drives many people around the church hopping circuit.
Sure it’s nice if we have strong emotional feelings for people that we serve. That helps that a lot. But if we put our focus on creating the feeling of being one, what that will do is lead to a congregation full selfish individuals... It will lead to people won’t serve because they just don’t feel like it. Or because they don’t really know these people. Or they don’t feel ready...
No. That’s not the way to go. Instead, we highlight the family that God has already created, and we call them to be a part of this family.
Another psator puts it like this: imagine a family decides to adopt you into their family. Now as long as they are the ones who do all the housework around the house - as long as mum is doing the washing up, dad is washing the dog, and sis is taking out the garbage. As long as they are doing all the chores, and you are sitting in front of the television flicking channels... As long as you are not serving, you will never feel part of the family. You will only remain a guest!
To become part of the family, you got to start serving, no matter how you feel. You get in there washing the dishes, washing the dog, taking out the garbage. In the gospel, we are already family - and once we start serving our brothers and sisters, the feeling of family will come.
[ PS: this is not to say that the feeling comes automatically - there can be lots of resentment etc. but this is where it's important to pastor them through those feelings... ] 8/27/2006 SCCCA training dayThis training day we will be served by Rev. Brian Tung and David Yu as they deliver two talks on the topic of "Ministry is..." In addition, there will be a whole swag of great workshops on a variety of topics. This time round there'll be something for everyone - whether you're a trainee leader looking to be equipped, or you're an old hand looking for some wisdom on hanging in there for the long haul, or someone thinking about full time ministry - we've got it covered!
New this time will be the option of ordering a lunch box through the rego page. We will arrange a choice of two lunch boxes sourced from my favourite Newtown Thai restaurant (Thai Times Nine), and delivered for the unbeatable price of $5.00! Not only will this cut down on time looking for a seat in busy restaurants, it'll also mean a great opportunity to lunch with leaders and trainee leaders from other churches.
The SCCCA English committee is painfully aware of the many Chinese churches looking for an English pastor or Youth pastor. In the mean time, SCCCA training days are a great opportunity to meet and network with Bible college students and ministry trainees who may be available to help out at your church. Why not grab their contact details, and pass 'em along to your ministry leaders for the preaching roster?
If you've never been to a SCCCA training day, then now's a great time to bring yourself, your ministry team, and the trainee leaders you're preparing for next year! Register online.
[ PS: SCCCA also has a Challenge night held at Moore College's DBK centre on Monday 28th August, 7:30pm, particularly for those thinking about full time ministry. Come hear a challenging talk from Rev. Ying Yee, and get your questions about full time ministry answered! ] 8/25/2006 Mindshifts: partners, not enemiesSound a bit like your church?
However not all deacons and elders are out to create obstacles and tear down gospel ministry. In fact, very few are actually out to do that! Such church leaders do exist - and churches need to observe their constitution in order to prevent such people from damaging the church. But there are not as many as you might at first imagine!
It's just that we often start off with a negative impression of our church leaders. And then we don't allow anything to change that perception. Instead, we highlight the conflicts that reinforce our negative image of them.
But in actual fact the bulk of deacons and elders are humble God-fearing men and women who love the church and who want gospel ministry to thrive. And what can often appear to be obstructionist behaviour actually comes from a desire to protect the church they love so much. The majority of deacons don't set out to destroy gospel ministry! Often it's a case of bad communication, or a difference in ministry philosophy.
What's important in going into full time ministry in a Chinese church is to have a mindshift about deacons and elders. To stop thinking of them as people who delight in creating obstructions and frustrating gospel ministry. And instead to think of them as people who dearly love the church and who want to protect it from danger!
And when you have that mindshift, deacons and elders become our partners in ministry, rather than our enemies. Their perspective can alert us to weaknesses we may not have considered in our ministry planning. They can help us identify which areas could do with more selling.
This is not to say that pastors should adopt the ministry philosophy of their deacons and elders! Or that deacons and elders can be lazy in their relationship with pastors. But it does mean that pastors can give thanks for the care and concern of deacons and elders for the church. And if their theology or ministry philosophy is less-than-ideal ... well, whose job is it to deal with that? It's the job of the pastor to equip and train his ministry partners in the exercise of their ministry. As Paul says,
So don't be turned off by Chinese church deacons and elders. Instead be impressed by their care for the church, see them as your partners in ministry, and equip them to do their job even better!
[ PS: obviously this also applies to lay leaders who are frustrated with their church leadership. Don't give up on them - instead, have patience! ] 8/23/2006 The perils of business travelRegular readers will know that I recently went to Macau for the 7th CCCOWE conference - a conference of those doing ministry in Chinese churches around the world, to encourage the Chinese church to get on with the work of world evangelisation. The conference started on the Monday, and I arrived on Sunday afternoon in order to get settled. But in that first day I was approached by prostitutes twice. And that was in broad daylight!
When Christian men travel overseas, they often find themselves away from everything that's normal. That includes being out of sight from friends and family, and being away from our regular routines of daily life.
But not only that, there is a feeling of anonymity that comes with being in a different part of the world, thousands of miles away from the people who know you, lost in a sea of people where no one knows who you are.
And that combination of being away from from normal patterns of life and anonymity makes for a situation where Christian men can easily fall into sexual sin: prostitutes, in-room movies, flirting with work colleagues...
So if you are a Christian man going away by yourself, don't play with temptation. Whether married or not, build things in place that will recover some routine, and keep you accountable to others:
And if you're a friend of a Christian man going overseas, do the loving thing for him. Be upfront about the danger. Tell him to watch out for sexual temptation, tell him what things he can do to be sexually pure, and offer to keep in contact with him.
Overseas business travel can be exciting - but don't kid yourself as to how impervious you are. It can also provide lots of opportunities for sin...
[ PS: of course it's not just overseas business travel - travelling interstate or to another town can pose just the same danger! ] 8/21/2006 Mindshifts: soldiers, not shoppersYou see, people who want to get into full time ministry start out with a desire to serve God's people by teaching the Bible. And they're committed to teaching the Bible without compromise: wherever it means them going, whatever it costs them. They know it'll cost them dearly, but they're ready for it. And for quite a few of them, it has already cost them quite a lot: highly paid jobs, the respect of family friends, the safety and security of middle class life.
But right at the end of their preparation for ministry, something ... strange happens.
Ministry stops being about serving God's people wherever it means going, whatever it costs them. But instead, it somehow becomes about getting a good job with good pay and conditions. A job that'll set you up with a good career path - a ministry career path. Something happens that turns ministry candidates from grim soldiers of the gospel - to shoppers strolling through Myers. Idly browsing through racks of silk shirts. Looking for the best.
No longer will they seriously consider a difficult ministry position. Or to a small church with not much going on. Or a position with below-average remuneration. Why else are Chinese churches struggling to find pastors? Or churches in the South and West of Sydney struggling to fill positions? Not for a lack of graduates, or for a lack of ministry to be done in those places!
Paul expected Timothy to endure hardship, like a soldier (2 Timothy 2:3). He calls Timothy to join him in suffering (2 Timothy 1:8). And so we need to switch from thinking of ministry as a career with job prospects, remuneration, and opportunities to flourish - and remember that ministry means humble and sacrificial service. To recover Paul's vision of ministry.
For some, suffering's alright. They'll actually be happy to go out with a big bang - to die on the mission field as a martyr (and get Moore College another plaque for the chapel wall). At least that brings them glory! But the slow 'death' of an obscure ministry is unappealing. This shows that they are really pursuing glory.
For others, it is the money after all. They'll pass up a ministry where they could actually do a lot (perhaps they know the culture, maybe there are lots of opportunities). And instead, they'll find themselves in a position that pays well. Sure, there's also a lot of ministry to do... But it's the money and all it brings.
And for still others, it's power. Forget about where they might be most fruitful. The calculus here is which kind of denomination allows them the most power and authority. Sure, they might be theologically trained - but somehow they've forgotten that this doesn't guarantee anything (just look elsewhere!). They've forgotten that human sinfulness means they too need checks and balances against themselves. For them, it's about the power.
But ministry is really about service. It sounds stupid to say something so self-evident - but when jobs are on offer, people seem to forget all about preaching the gospel wherever it takes us, whatever it costs us. Martin Luther writes,
We are called to be soldiers - not shoppers.
[ PS: this is written with full time ministry in mind - but the same thing could also be said about those who are some years along in lay ministry... ] 8/8/2006 Technical difficultiesIt's not that there aren't things to write about... for instance, the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict comes to mind.
The reason for this is that I'm having some computer problems at the moment - and until that's fixed up, it makes it kind of difficult to post. I have to get my files off the laptop hard drive, and while waiting for a new computer I'm limited to a frustratingly slow computer (233 MHz!).
So until then, why not check out the Quarterly Indexes, and read the old posts!
[ PS: you can isolate the Quarterly Indexes by clicking on 'Quarterly Index' in the category list to the left ] 8/1/2006 Mindshifts: think like a missionaryFor all its problems though, I am thoroughly convinced that Chinese churches are the way to go to reach the Chinese with the gospel. It means that Chinese people don't have to cross unnecessary cultural barriers in order to hear the gospel. It makes it easier for Chinese Christians to invite along their family and friends, making use of their existing web of relationships. And it makes it easier to disciple new Christians, since many of them will be dealing with the same sorts of issues.
But enough of that - today we consider how to stick at pastoral ministry in a Chinese church. And in order to do that, there are several important mindshifts you need to make. The first being that you must think like a missionary.
The reason why many pastors crash-and-burn when they step into a Chinese church is that they expect things to work exactly like they are in a local (Anglo) church. They expect that relationships are formed in the same way, that respect and trust should be given you in the exact same way, and that you can communicate with people in the same way you might in the Anglo church down the road.
Pastors who have stepped into Chinese churches with such a mindset are destined for conflict with the church leadership, and early failure.
What's important is to realise that you are stepping into a bi-cultural situation. Yes, it might be a church located in cosmopolitan Australia. Yes, you may be working with ABCs who share a lot in common with Australians. But the majority of the church leaders will likely be Chinese born overseas, with a very different cultural background. And you need to be like a missionary when you relate to them.
What is a missionary like when they go overseas to a different culture? They are not disrespectful to the host culture. They change the way they communicate in order to be best heard. They may even modify their dress sense in order not to offend. They do everything necessary, so as to be able to preach Christ crucified.
A missionary who insists on doing things 'the way they do it back home' simply won't function well as a missionary! Perhaps they were unintentionally ethnocentric, or perhaps they are being wantonly selfish. But in either case, they have made it very hard for their message to be heard.
And it's that missionary mindset that an ABC pastor has to adopt when they start serving in a Chinese church, if they are to function well. It means realising that there are in fact different cultures at play. That different cultures mean relating in different ways.
And that it's up to us as servants of the gospel to take the first step. Eagerly giving up our rights and preferences, so that the gospel alone might be heard.
[ PS: pastors 'imported' from overseas also need to realise that they are stepping into a missionary situation, since they often have to relate to ABCs! And there have been many conflicts caused by this as well... ] |
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