Article: "Keep the Main Things, the Main Things"

“Keep the Main Things, The Main things”

April 2012

How do you do with prioritizing? I must admit that for me it is an everyday discipline, and that I am constantly trying to cultivate it. I have also learned that I can rarely prioritize without saying “no” to someone or something; I don't often like this, because if I prioritize, this means someone somewhere is NOT going to be happy with me. I like it much better when people are happy with me.

When we state that we want to “keep the main things, the main things”, we are saying that there are some things that we value and believe that are more important than others. The idea is that we all have foundational values that we say we live by. We say that these foundational values should guide us as we do whatever it is that we do. If we depart from these values, we may still say that our values are important, but our repeated behavior may reveal something else entirely. What is true personally, is also true organizationally. There are many organizations that have values (some may have mission statements) that communicate that there are certain core beliefs that drive them. However, are they really who they say they are? (i.e., the way they do business, conduct their work, live out their ministry)

I have yet to meet a person or organization when challenged with the fact that they may be living inconsistently with their stated values, that responds: “Oh, yes, we are aware of that...thank you so much for pointing it out”! Why is this? Because most of us don't purposely get distracted or led astray from our values. It happens over time, because we have let certain things in our lives slide, or have been listening to other authorities that tell us “well, those values are all fine and good, but here is what will really make you a success...or will get you to your goal...faster”. For the most part, our culture is ambivalent to the lessons of history (unless it is recent history), is given to short-term thinking, and is rather impressed with all of their research, stats and graphs (especially successful business people and organizational model builders). However, it seems that the greatest claim to authority that one has in our culture relates directly to one word: SUCCESS. In my opinion, (and I think that history bears this out) only ABSOLUTE DISASTER stops most people in their tracks when they are filled with their own pride due to their own accomplishments. Even then, there is no guarantee that they will learn from their disaster and change their beliefs and behavior (The Old Testament helps us with this).

Your point, Tom? God dictates to us what the “main things” are supposed to be, and cares little whether we get our share of “reaching our American dreams”, i.e. ....our success..

For example: God want us to “evangelize”; not because he needs our help, or because he doesn't love people. He wants us to love him, and love our neighbor because it brings him glory (the REAL purpose of life and the church). He wants us to “evangelize” because we love our neighbor, not because they can relieve some of our angst or make us feel good about ourselves (if they would just convert). We shouldn't reach out to others because they can keep our organizations alive (so we don't have to go through any discomfort or so the pastor can keep a job). No, if we truly love our neighbor then we will not seek to “use” them for our own purposes, but will seek to understand how God is ALREADY at work in their lives (since HE is the only one who converts a heart), and how he wants us to be faithful pointing them to the Gospel. In other words, we will pray for and be light and salt among our neighbors (believer and non), because we actually WANT to love them. If they convert to Christ and join our church, we then get to love them as family members.

So what do I believe are some of our “main things” for the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul as we navigate the American culture?

• Keep secondary authorities in their place: successful business people, psychologists, philosophers, church growth experts etc. may have certain insights to offer us, but we will only know this as we apply and grow deeper in our understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the lived out Kingdom of God. Even clergy and theologians should be tested and challenged if they are not pointing us and teaching us to follow Christ on his terms.
• Avoid the public relations trap: People and organizations are great at pretending that they are something when they are not. PR is all about managing public perception, and controlling a situation for an outcome that is desired. In other words, PR is manipulative, not authentic. As we will be reminded by Jesus in the Sermon on the mount in a few weeks: authenticity can't be faked...not in the long run. Be more concerned with who we really are as a church, than how we are perceived as a church. Perception matters, but it isn't the starting place for ministry. If we are open to it, Lent can aid us in becoming a people of constant re-evaluation and repentance. Lent assumes we are sinners and that we have major blind spots, not that we have it “together” with just the need of an occasional tune-up.
• Seek your God with all of your being: The more we know our Lord with our “heart, soul, and mind” the more authentic and joyful we will be (no matter what may come). If our desire is truly for our Lord, he will give us the desires of our heart. If we have little to give out to others, then we should expect little in return regarding ministry to others. Communally and personally, disciplined worship, prayer, and growth in the Word of God are significant ways that God draws us to himself. However, the above disciplines will only be meaningful and effective if the motives and desires of our hearts are engaged.
• Embrace depth and breadth . It has been said that “the American Church is a mile wide and an inch deep”. If one accepts this statement as containing some accuracy (and this writer does), what is the reason? In short, I would say that depth isn't “cool” and we don't really believe that it matters that much. It doesn't sell well, and it is way too slow. Depth takes a lot of work, and it isn't always measurable in the worlds eyes. However, if true, this reveals a huge problem in the way that Americans think about church. In this writer's opinion, the long-term effects of such thinking has contributed greatly to the slow decline in the church in the last two decades. Our ways of doing things are not transformational (regarding the heart); God's ways are.

Many of these themes will already be familiar to you from prior knowledge and recent sermons. However, these are themes that I will often return to as we seek to move together as a family to be the people of God. As we reach out to those in need of reconciliation with God in the Roanoke Valley, we do so knowing that our God wants to use us. May we keep “the main things the main things” and avoid shortcuts that side-step God's transformational plan in our lives, in His church, and in his world.