Emerging Thoughts
I have landed, in more ways than one.
I am back home after a full, thought provoking, prayerful, and at times painful weekend.
It all made much more sense after reading Phyllis Tickle's book, The Great Emergence, upon which the three days of sessions in Memphis were based.
In her book Tickle examines major cultural and historical shifts that occur about every 500 years that prompt a response and reshaping of Christianity. The most recent upheaval was during the Reformation. (This is a less than Cliff Note version...) We are now entering that next time of upheaval, which has been called The Great Emergence, and while Protestantism came out of the Reformation, no name other than Emerging (not to be confused with Emergent) has been given to the form of Christianity resulting from the current cultural shifts. More recently perhaps also referred to by some as Missional Churches responding to a Post Modern Culture.
I am still trying to process what that all means, but have landed solidly in the space of committing myself to following Christ as best I can, taking His commandments seriously and paying close attention to what the New Testament has to say. I would say I am a mid line emergent, not nearly as far left as some, but trying to walk very carefully in the way of Jesus. Humility and service to the poor (both poor in spirit and poverty stricken) are two attributes of how I see that being lived out. It probably puts me into a non-fundamentalist, more moderate theology with Shane Claiborne and Tony Campolo as writers worth reading and speakers worth listening to. I know some may view them as left, but believe me, there are plenty to the left of them.
I did make it back for a prayer meeting tonight involving a non-traditional church plant in our community, and God has seemingly landed me there as well. This is a church that would specifically minister to the poor in our community, the poor that don't yet know Jesus. I have sensed God calling me to this, but with upcoming writing commitments it didn't look like it was going to fit. Now that that has taken care of itself, I find myself firmly landing back in that place of church planting, so it will be interesting to see what other doors God opens and closes over the next few weeks and months.
I am glad to be home with my family. I thank God for His love.
Peace.
I am back home after a full, thought provoking, prayerful, and at times painful weekend.
It all made much more sense after reading Phyllis Tickle's book, The Great Emergence, upon which the three days of sessions in Memphis were based.
In her book Tickle examines major cultural and historical shifts that occur about every 500 years that prompt a response and reshaping of Christianity. The most recent upheaval was during the Reformation. (This is a less than Cliff Note version...) We are now entering that next time of upheaval, which has been called The Great Emergence, and while Protestantism came out of the Reformation, no name other than Emerging (not to be confused with Emergent) has been given to the form of Christianity resulting from the current cultural shifts. More recently perhaps also referred to by some as Missional Churches responding to a Post Modern Culture.
I am still trying to process what that all means, but have landed solidly in the space of committing myself to following Christ as best I can, taking His commandments seriously and paying close attention to what the New Testament has to say. I would say I am a mid line emergent, not nearly as far left as some, but trying to walk very carefully in the way of Jesus. Humility and service to the poor (both poor in spirit and poverty stricken) are two attributes of how I see that being lived out. It probably puts me into a non-fundamentalist, more moderate theology with Shane Claiborne and Tony Campolo as writers worth reading and speakers worth listening to. I know some may view them as left, but believe me, there are plenty to the left of them.
I did make it back for a prayer meeting tonight involving a non-traditional church plant in our community, and God has seemingly landed me there as well. This is a church that would specifically minister to the poor in our community, the poor that don't yet know Jesus. I have sensed God calling me to this, but with upcoming writing commitments it didn't look like it was going to fit. Now that that has taken care of itself, I find myself firmly landing back in that place of church planting, so it will be interesting to see what other doors God opens and closes over the next few weeks and months.
I am glad to be home with my family. I thank God for His love.
Peace.
Labels: Church Planting, Missional, Phyllis Tickle, Post Modern Culture, shane claiborne, The Great Emergence, Tony Campolo
posted by www.kathypride.com at
10:09 PM
3 Comments:
Welcome, home!
Good postings on your trip, I enjoyed reading them, and they provided much for me to ponder, thanks! The sermon yesterday was more than awesome! I need to get the tape so I can hear it again. It was called, "not according to plan" based on James 4:13-16. That is where we are told not to go about and make our own plans saying what and when we will do, but to seek what God's will for our plans our. Really good stuff! We prayed, stated aloud some commitments to God, I can't remember the entire list, but part of it was agreeing not to do anything that was against God's will (? I'm messing it up!) I think that we KNOW is against God's will, and to agree to do what He calls us to, and accept natural consequences as discipline for our sin. Anyway, it was great, prayer time was wonderful, many tears and hugs, and one young teen boy came up for prayer! Love ya, Kathy!
Hey Kathy,
Welcome back...
You had quite a trip (good for you), and you secure another ticket. I need to take you as my traveling partner!
HUGS!
There is a thread here that I want to tie into a thread from another post...that of making oneself beautiful and how far that can go before it is "wrong".
Let me preface this by saying that I am so escited to see what God is going to work through you with regard to the poor and hungry and needy.
And I guess I have to preface this also by saying that as excited as we get about how we see God working in somebody else, we still need to be sensitive to what He calls us EACH to do individually. We can't all be hands or feet. Some of us have to be backs or ears or shoulders.
As I was reading your recent posts, I was thinking (in my own rebellious way) "Yeah, but what about the yuppies of the world? God wants them too! And THEY may never go into the gutters...and if Jesus is only there, they will never meet Him!"
So there are both sides of the coin. But I wonder how much it costs to have breast implants or a tummy tuck or a face lift...and how many meals that would buy for someone overseas or if it would mean the difference between someone getting caught up on their mortgage and going homeless?
On the other hand, if I buy a bag of oreos, am I not guilty of the same thing?
As was pointed out on a comment on another post, we CAN love Jesus and do both. But I think it is GOOD to think about how wealthy we really are and what we really need, and how loving it would be to make a small sacrifice (like that bag of oreos, or that latte), if it would mean a meal or two for someone else!!
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