Archive for the ‘Ethics’ Category

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Praying with a closed fist

July 18, 2010

I’ve been looking at the story in Mark where Jesus cursed the fig tree then turned questions about it into teaching on prayer. As so often happens, when you think of something, things come into your life around that topic. Further, I choose what goes into my mind as much as possible. So, I never watch TV news, for instance. When I work out I listen to talks either about God (sermons from John Ortberg and Bill Hybels) or technology.

This week John Ortberg was speaking on prayer. He said, “It doesn’t work to come to God and have a closed fist.” Henri Nouwen wrote a wonder little book on prayer, “With Open Hands.” Same idea. You cannot be open to God if you are still grasping something–hiding something from God. Jesus said in this story that one thing that you could be grasping is hatred or anger toward another person. He said that before you can pray, you must give forgiveness to others.

I continue to observe religious people (who think they are spiritual, but that’s a different thing) build fences around themselves in order to separate the good from the bad. I was just thinking about the progression–in the 50s and 60s, the phrase was “I have a black friend;” then in the 70s, “I know a woman who is a good leader; now in the ‘oughts,’ “I know a homosexual person.” I have read the theology derived to say that in each case these people were less than human. So I wonder, what is my clenched fist? What is yours? Where do I find justifications for my attitudes? What is there within me that still builds a barrier between me and others? Jesus took it to that level–the level of your relationship to God and your relationship to other people. That’s all that matters.

Today, black people are mostly accepted into society despite some lingering racism. Women are now pastors and leaders despite some lingering sexism and weird interpretations of Paul’s writings. Homosexuals–well, the jury is still out.

But as for you, what are you holding tight to that interferes with an honest, open relationship with God?

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Things you can do to help others

April 9, 2010

Ever get frustrated when someone tells you to do something in general without offering concrete suggestions? So it may be strange for a Christian blog to point to one that is not Christian. But Leo Babauta offers such great practical advice for daily living, that I love checking out his Zen Habits blog. (I don’t think he practices Zen, but that seems to be an “in” word for many advice bloggers.) In this post, he offers 34 Little Ways to Share with the World. It seems to fit the path I’ve been on for a few days on being doers of the Word.

Here are some of his 34 ideas to get you started. Maybe you can think of others. If so, comment here to share.

  1. Help an entrepreneur with a Kiva donation.
  2. Volunteer your services with a homeless shelter, soup kitchen, or other charity organization.
  3. Donate money, food, or others goods to charity.
  4. Bake cookies or brownies and share with a neighbor.
  5. Volunteer your expertise (whatever it is) to the world, and give those services to anyone who needs them.
  6. Give step-by-step instructions for doing something valuable you know how to do, online, for all to read.
  7. Give your books away to friends or charities.
  8. Start a community garden in your neighborhood, or contribute to an existing one.
  9. Give people a ride in your car. Carpool.
  10. Hold potlucks every week, rotating among friends/family.
  11. Perform random acts of kindness.
  12. When someone wants to repay you for something, ask them to pay it forward instead.
  13. Clean up a park near you.
  14. Share your tips with others online or through a free ebook.
  15. Smile. Be compassionate in all human transactions.
  16. Invest in a friend who wants to start her own business. Don’t ask for the money back for at least a few years.
  17. Make things, and give them to people.
  18. Read to the blind, help the elderly, assist those with disabilities.
  19. Start or contribute to a tool-lending library in your neighborhood.

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Leadership Summit

August 10, 2009

I’ve been off the proverbial grid for most of the past two weeks. Two of those days were invested in the Willow Creek Association Leadership Summit. These were intense days of high profile leaders and scholars speaking on a variety of subjects applicable to both church leaders and business (and NGO) leaders as well. Considering I used Marriott points from my business travels, the $99 I paid (discounted because of an affiliation with Compassion International) plus meals and the drive to and from Chicago generated huge return on investment.

As I break down my notes and compile themes, I’ll have a series of posts reflecting on the teaching. From a personal leadership view, Bill Hybels talked about starting his day off right. Instead of being in a rush to be the first one in the office every day, he invests the time in reading (the Bible and thoughtful literature), meditating and journaling. Now when he arrives at the office, he’s refreshed and ready to tackle the meetings and tasks of running a huge operation.

I’ve written on the impact the study of Luke 12 has had on me, and I’m obviously not alone. Many speakers cited the stories–especially of the “Prodigal Son.” Jesus tells the three stories gathered in that chapter to illustrate who is a neighbor when he says the second commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. Much of the teaching of the summit for church leaders pointed to examples of how people of faith are responding to this commandment.

As Hybels put it in his opening remarks, there is nothing like the local church when the church is doing it right. In these stormy economic times when people are losing jobs and even their houses, he challenged his members who are still working to be generous to their brothers and sisters. The response was overwhelming.

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Make a list

July 16, 2009

I was doing some quick browsing through some of Paul’s letters looking for something when I noticed a pattern. Much as Paul preaches the gospel of God’s grace and living in the Spirit, he also gets trapped into making lists. Much of the first letter to the Corinthians is in that vein. Even the first Christians said, “It’s great to talk about living in relationship to Jesus, but just give me a list–a  check-off guide. In that way I know what to do and can measure how good I am versus others.” And Paul would play that game. I know he was just trying to be helpful, but his writings in that regard have led to endless speculation and argument.

This leads to another game that too many Christians love playing–arguing about the small points in Paul’s lists. There’s an old English saying, “Penny wise, pound foolish.” Some pay close attention to little things in life (for example the speck of sawdust in other people’s eyes) and miss the big picture (that is, living in relationship with Jesus).

There was a time when I lived to argue. Then one day I saw that arguing gets you nowhere. I just try hard (and often fail) to live in relationship with God and let the arguers argue. That’s the truth of simplicity. Live in relationship with God and serve others.

Gary Mintchell

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Pointing back at you

June 8, 2009

Recently there was a small group discussion. I should agree with the participants–at least most of the time. But sometimes I am uncomfortable. It’s a rush to judgement thing. And there are a couple of “bogeymen” that just raise their ire. Reading in the first chapter of Romans where Paul lists the many ways that people sin, they immediately jumped on the homosexual issue.  They stopped reading at the end of the first chapter. Too bad. The second chapter begins (by the way, Paul didn’t write in chapters, so he would have expected the discussion to proceed through this next thought):

Therefore, you have no excuse, whoever you are, when you judge others; for in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things.

Have you ever taken the time to be quiet for periods of time every day and let God talk to you? Have you ever used this time to look into your heart and see all the hatred and evil things in there that you are capable of? Have you realized the grace of God that you have either overcome those impulses and desires or the grace that says, “you are forgiven, go and sin no more”?

When I was a kid, there was a saying “When you point a finger at another, three fingers are pointing back at you.” It is so easy to sit in judgment of others. Remember, someone is judging you. And it isn’t pretty. It is a better attitude in life to realize how thankful each of us should be for the grace of God–and to extend that grace in His name to everyone we meet. And how hard it is to live that thought.

Peace, Gary Mintchell

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Servant Leadership

May 16, 2009

Last weekend I was involved with a youth soccer tournament. It’s the 14th. The last two weeks are always stressful for me, since I recruit and assign referees. Then during the weekend I have to make sure all the games are covered  when refs have to leave or get injured or something. But when things are going well and I don’t have to calm coaches or soothe irate parents, I have time for observation.

One thing I’ve noticed over the years of this and other summer projects is how normally nice people seem to get on little ego trips during these events. If they are on the committee or sometimes even just peripherally involved, some just need a status symbol. In these events, it’s a golf cart for riding around the site. I want exercise, so normally I’ll walk even though I have a cart at my disposal for getting to the scene of controversy quickly or ferrying referees from place to place. Some who have no responsibilities just seem to want to have one to ride around in.

This is not extreme, but it does remind me that Jesus’ example was washing feet. If you want to be a leader, then be a servant. When I watch others, I’m challenged to look at myself and ask whether I’m still fulfilling my roles as a servant leader or as a lord ruler. How about you?

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Ache Search Rejoice

April 20, 2009

— Gary Mintchell

Now that we are celebrating after Easter, this passage from Luke seems even more meaningful. I’ve been contemplating on Luke 15 for months now, and finally decided to write about it. During my study of Luke, I visited Willow Creek Community Church in suburban Chicago. Founder/Pastor Bill Hybels was concerned that his church had lost a little edge and brought out one of his original “Contagious Christians” talks. The outline is his, other thoughts mine.

It seems that well into his ministry, Jesus heard the grumbling of the church people–those who observed all the laws (so they thought anyway), attended services, hung out with the right people and all that. These are things we can recognize today from “church people.” So he told three stories to answer their question about why he hung out with “sinners and tax collectors.” The first story is about a shepherd who has a flock of a hundred sheep. Upon discovering that he has lost one, he leaves everything to find it. The second story is about a woman who has lost a coin and searches diligently until she finds it. The third story is about a man who loses one of his sons and looks longingly every day until that sons returns.

These stories have three things in common: aching, searching, rejoicing. And they all describe God. And as we live in remembrance of the Easter events and celebrate the risen Jesus, remember this context.

God aches for every lost person who cannot find the way to salvation and wholeness. Just as we should ache for those same people. Ache is deeper than shallow emotion. It is as if something in us is missing and we won’t be complete without it. Do we care about those who are lost? Or are we comfortable with those around us? Do we always sit an empty chair in our small groups in remembrance that we need to fill that chair with someone who needs to be brought into relationship?

The aching leads to action–searching. The shepherd diligently searches though all the rocks and crevaces until he finds the lost. The woman sweeps the floor, moving furniture, looking under things until she finds the coin. The man goes out to the hill and looks everyday for the return of his son. Do we ache so much for the lost that we search for them? Are we trying to bring wholeness through Jesus to people in need?

Finding leads to rejoicing. In each case the finder is so overjoyed that they invite all their friends over for a big celebration. Just as Jesus was telling the Pharisees and other “church people” (including us) that God rejoices for every person who was lost and then was found, so we should rejoice when a person finds the way and comes to God. As we live in this after Easter celebration along with facing a chenge in pastoral leadership, it’s important to remember we can have Easter celebrations every week that we find lost people and help them find wholeness. That’s what has grown our congregation, and what we need to continue to focus on.

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Compassion

April 16, 2009

— Gary Mintchell

OK, so referring to a blog called Zen Habits may seem strange in a Christian blog, but bear with me. I don’t think Leo is exactly a Buddhist, anyway. But his post yesterday about “Five Tiny Steps to Quit Being Such a Jerk” really resonnated with me. Wish I had read it earlier in my life 😉

Ever witness a situation where someone else (of course, not you or me) berates someone, yells at a sales clerk or airline ticket counter person, pushes through a line to get to the front? OK, ever done any of that yourself? Leo witnessed an occasion, then had an insight. More than likely that person wasn’t consciously trying to be a jerk. He/she was just only thinking of themself.

What can we do about it? Well, read the post for the full effect. To summarize–try a little compassion toward others. Put yourself in their shoes. Try five times a day to think of others before yourself. Try it and I think you’ll find yourself actually living more of a New Testament lifestyle.

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Inspired to act

September 3, 2008

I guess I’ll continue the theme of actions today, because I just read this blog post by Steve Leveen, founder and CEO of Levenger–a retailer of fine pens and productivity tools for thinkers. On a suggestion from a friend, he read “Mountains Beyond Mountains” by Tracy Kidder about Dr. Paul Farmer (MD) who established a medical mission to Haiti even though he is a Harvard physician. The book inspired him (Leveen) to become a tutor at a local school. Interesting how ideas come together. I began my study of Luke this year with thoughts about John the Baptist’s teaching that following spiritual renewal you should go out and help other people. Jesus then began his ministry essentially the same way. Reading, listening to the Spirit, doing. Those three go together. Makes me wonder what I’m doing…

-Gary Mintchell

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Turn the world upside down

August 22, 2008

It seems as though I’ve been on constant business trips this month. Finally home for a while. My regimen of posting to four blogs while traveling sort of lapsed. Anyway, continuing in my study of Luke, I’m looking at his reporting of the Sermon on the Mount in Chapter 6. “Blessed are you who are poor”; Blessed are you who hunger”; Blessed are you who weep”; Blessed are you when men hate you”. On the other hand, “Woe to you who are rich”; “Woe to you who are well fed”; “Woe to you who laugh”; “Woe to you when all men speak well of you”.

It is probably impossible to overstate the impact of the Roman Empire, the god-like worship of Caesar, the culture of power that permeated society at the time. These words are revolutionary. It’s not so much political revolutionary suggesting the replacement of one government with another. It is Jesus saying that all people need to replace one worldview with another. Replace the attitude that rich people are somehow superior in every way to poor people. Replace the attitude of “if you’ve got it, flaunt it.” Replace the attitude of “I’ve got power over you, do what I say.”

I’m not so sure that humans have progressed all that much from Roman times. We still have a predominant society of “getting mine” and “screw the rest.” Even among Christ-followers, there has recurred a theme of “we’re better” or “we’ll get financially rich because we’re Christians.” On the other hand, perhaps the body of people who truly try to follow the teachings of Jesus (and Paul) is slowly growing over time and may perhaps see the eventual overturning of the Roman worldview replaced by a God worldview. I pray that it’s soon.

Gary Mintchell

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