Looking for a Church

Well we are back down in the old neighbourhood after all of the transition. As those who have read know, this year has been a wild one. Back in Dec of 2006 I started taking over as the interim Lead Pastor of my church to cover for the Senior Pastor. That led to 4 months of leadership and a tonne of transtition. Around that time we learned we were to have our fourth child, near the end of that time was the wild change in jobs which necessitated a change in geography and of course we no longer attended the church I worked at. So now we are in the new location, I am at the new job, the new baby is 3 weeks old and it is time to find a new church community to hang with.

I wish I could do justice to the complexity of this issue for me. I think of a book like Revolution by George Barna (his greater work here) and so many more. Having been in leadership in the church, I am sure some would say "and it is better now that you are out of it", and having filled so may of the public and private roles that encompass leading a church, well I have too many opinions.

The debate can be seen raging right now within the Christian community and certainly outside of it. I am blown away by the American news coverage on the issue of "true" Chrsitianity, and all the iterations people are seeing.

Some, it seems, will die for the institution of church, others, although claiming to be Christian seem to think it needs a complete overhaul, a rebirth, maybe even a near death experience. Both parties claim an undying love for the teachings of Jesus. and there is the rub. How does one measure one's adherence to the teachings of Jesus. By how loud one yells that they believe? Or, as Jesus himself said, wisdom will be proved right be her actions. (Matthew 11:18-19) Note the context there as well, very interesting.

Without playing all my cards (is that a respectable metaphor?) I think I am laying some sort of a framework to the difficulties. Relevancy without heresy, great teaching with outward focus. Community and family support, without a sub-culture that kills the ability to relate to everyone who doesn't go to church - the majority of everybody I know.

So the journey begins. More to come I suppose.