Lenten Study Companion - Week 6

"And going a little further, he threw himself on the ground and prayed, 'My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want'."

Matthew 26:39

Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, and like the crowds greeting Jesus to Jerusalem, our worship is celebratory. Children in congregations throughout the country march through the aisles and halls of their churches waving palm branches. We sing hymns and songs of expectancy and anticipation, and many of us go ahead and plan out exactly what among our finest we will wear on Easter morning.

Yet, many of us jump far too quickly from the welcoming cheers of Jesus' arrival on Palm Sunday to the jubilant praise of Easter, marking Christ's resurrection and ascension. The resurrection doesn't occur without death, death without trial, and trial without betrayal. The great challenge for us as disciples of Jesus Christ is to not just carry our cross when there is reason to celebrate, but to cling to it and bear it even in the darkest of days.

This tension is on display in this week's text from Matthew. Jesus' first prayer is supplicant; asking that this impending time of suffering pass. It is an acknowledgement of fear and anxiousness, just as it is a plea for strength. The second prayer is confessional; that God's will be done despite the conditions of the flesh. Finally, Jesus' third prayer is one of affirmation and acceptance, that through Him, God's plan will be done.

The foundation of living out our call to be disciples of Jesus Christ is confession, not just as an admission of wrong-doing or transgression, but as an act of submission and profession of faith. We must be willing to live our lives according to God's will rather than our own. We journey knowing that we must confront the vitriol of the masses, the impartiality of power, and the brutality of the crucifixion. Brothers and sisters, this week, our journey of discipleship takes us through praise and adoration and the coming of the King, but it also takes us through the betrayal, suffering, and death of the one whom we love, the sacrificial Lamb of God.

This week, read and reflect on the passion narrative found in John 17-19:

• Think of the faces in the crowd when Jesus enters Jerusalem and imagine those same faces later shouting out to Pilate. What has changed within their hearts?
• What are the smells and sounds, the textures and colors of each scene in the narrative - the triumphal entry, the betrayal and arrest, the trial and beating, the condemnation and execution?
• As a disciple of Jesus, where are you in this narrative? What do you feel?

Yours, 

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

What Does Church Membership Mean?

While visiting one of our Sunday school classes recently, I was asked, "What happens when someone joins the church?" I responded as I think many other churches would similarly reply. I said that our pastors do some personal follow-up and that the staff does what it can to make sure that our new members get connected to a Sunday school class or a volunteer position. The truth of the matter is that this has been our answer to this question for quite some time.

Small groups - from the smallest of Sunday school classes to the largest choir, UMM and UMW groups, free and fair trade coalitions, Emmaus reunion groups, etc - are wonderful places of fellowship and belonging, and have an essential place within the life of the church. Service opportunities are part of the fulfillment of God's call for us to love our neighbor, and if excluded from the life of the church, the church would cease to be the Church. Yet, as the primary connection points for new members, small groups and service opportunities have largely been unsuccessful. If not, then why do we keep seeing declining numbers in mainline protestant churches?

I found the question that I was posed interesting for an all together different reason because it raises a question about our own understanding of what it means to "join" a church. Many unchurched, de-churched, and even churched individuals, especially in the 18-35 year old demographic (thought not exclusively), find little reason to join the church in membership. By coming to worship, participating in service opportunities, and attending Sunday school classes or Bible studies, they consider themselves “joined” and active members in the life of the church.

What is any different about doing these things as a non-member than as a member? There is no impetus to join a church when their subsequent steps of action are no different than what they were before they joined. Instead, what would happen if we understood and followed through with membership as the covenantal relationship it was meant to be?

What would happen if church membership meant that someone was saying “Yes” to being discipled and that the church was saying “Yes” to discipling them? What if joining a church meant taking the first step into a process of intentional discipleship that combined the accountability found in small groups, the orientation of living out God’s call to mission in the world found in service opportunities, with the instruction in the foundational principles of our faith?

What would our church look like if every youth small group leader had been through this process, discerned their call to work in youth disciple-making, and had been trained for that purpose? What would our church look like if every member of the Faith + Finance Committee had been through this process, discerned their call to lead the church in practicing grace compelled generosity, and had been trained for that purpose? What would happen to Norman, this state, this world if this is what our church looked like?

We have been called to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. I think that the time has come for us at McFarlin to find out what the answers are to these questions.

Yours,
Michael C. Andres
Director of Discipleship

Lenten Study Companion - Week 5

"Then Jesus told his disciples, 'If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life'?" 

Matthew 16:24-26

Many of us have probably used Google, MapQuest, or some other search tool on the internet or our smartphones for directions. We study over them, seeing exactly which turns we need to make, how many cross-streets we'll have to pass, and get an idea of how long it will take to get there. We start walking or driving thinking we have have a solid understanding of the path set before us only to discover, somewhere along the journey, that we're not entirely sure what we've gotten ourselves into and that we're a bit lost.

This scene in the Gospel of Matthew is not all that dissimilar. Jesus is not giving this group an invitation to become disciples. At this point, the disciples have been with Jesus for quite some time; they've long since begun their journey of discipleship. Instead, Jesus is explaining to the disciples what exactly it is that they've gotten themselves into. They, and we, cannot understand the fullness of the cost of discipleship, or the transformation which will begin to occur as a result of our discipleship, before we decide we want to be disciples of Jesus Christ.

To be a disciple of Jesus Christ is join a counter-cultural movement which began long before we did, and will carry on long after we have departed. Our cultural ethos is not one of self-denial or self-sacrifice. Everything in our culture informs and directs our attention inward - to "look out for me and mine" or "pull yourself up by your own bootstraps."

The word which Jesus gave His disciples and in which we now share is that to be a disciple is not just about a singular decision based solely on reason and fullness of knowledge. The mere decision to become Christian - to being your discipleship - in and of itself goes against the grain of our society. With each thought, word, and deed, a disciple must submit to God's leading call rather than to their own or our culture's beckoning. This is by no means an easy path we have been called to take, but we are strengthened by the movement of God's grace, and affirmed in taking it together as one covenantal community of faith.

Practices of Preparation:

• PRAYERS - when you wake up, at midday, and before you go to bed, ask that God guide your thoughts
• PRESENCE - come to College Lunch after worship and spend time getting to know some of our students
• GIFTS - reflect on what informs your decision to give/withhold your time, talent, and resources - is your generosity guided by our culture or by God?
• SERVICE - pray for the leadership of our church in transition
• WITNESS - share with someone how you experienced God by practicing one of these four things listed above

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Adult Confirmation - Session 8: Called with Purpose-The Journey of a Disciple

Sorry for the delay in getting this week's posting up... Better late than never!


Prayer of the Week:
Father God, Perfector of our faith, give us the grace to lay aside our differences. Take away our prejudices, our greed, our hatred, and whatever else hinders us from being united under the banner of Christ our Savior. There is one Body, one Spirit, and one Hope, and in it is in You we place our faith. Strengthen us as a covenant community, that our words, thoughts, and deeds would be steeped in Your divine love. Amen.

Opening Thoughts:
Each of us is different. We have unique upbringings, different family and job situations, and specialized talents and passions. We've been created and endowed with tremendous potential in fulfilling our call to be stewards of creation, love one another, and share the hope of our salvation. Our culture asks us to define ourselves by our uniqueness, to highlight and exemplify our differences, and for each of us to honor them alike. This in and of itself is not a bad thing. However, it can often lead to misplaced hope, devotion, and actions unbecoming to the Gospel to which we've been called.

Our charge as disciples of Jesus Christ is not to highlight our own creativities and skills in order that they be lauded and proclaimed for all to see. Rather, we are called to join together in one accord in order that the goodness and glory of God be proclaimed; that our neighbors, locally and globally, would look to us and see not the individual, but instead, the loving face of God. The focus for this week of study, discussion, and exercise is to explore what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ, what it means to live in love, and how we exists as one body of faith.

Suggested Scripture Readings:

• Matthew 20:1-16 - "The Laborers in the Vineyard"
• Mark 12:28-34 - "The First Commandment"
• Luke 9:57-62 - "Would-Be Followers of Jesus"
• John 21:15-19 - "Jesus and Peter"
• 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 - "One Body with Many Members"
• 1 Timothy 4:6-16 - "A Good Minister of Jesus Christ"
• 1 Peter 1:13-25 - "A Call to Holy Living"

Reflection Questions:

• Is love a gift? What does it look like for us to love in the way that the passage in Mark describes?
• In the text from Luke, Jesus tells the would-be follower to "let the dead bury their own dead." How do you understand this verse?
• What "dead" things in your life might you need to leave behind in order to follow/keep following Jesus?
• There are many places in Paul's letters where we find encouragement and command that the church be united. To what extent do you see McFarlin as well as The Church universal practicing unity in the face of social and cultural diversity?
• What are some of the positive and negative connotations with "holiness?"

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Lenten Study Companion - Week 4

"If you love me, you will keep my commandments." 

John 14:15

Pretty simple, right? To love Jesus means we follow His commandments. After all, weren't the commandments things like not killing anyone, worshipping other gods, or committing adultery? If that’s what Jesus is talking about, we’re doing pretty well. Most of us probably haven’t killed anyone; even if we've had rough relations with our parents, deep down we still probably love them; and it’s probably safe to say that not many of us are melting down gold to make statues of cows worship so that we can worship them [see Exodus 32]. By that account, we must all love Jesus.

But that’s not all of it, is it? If we turn back a few pages in The Gospel of John, Jesus gives His disciples a new commandment. He says, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” This is the commandment to which Jesus refers when we says “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” If we love Jesus, we will love one another as Jesus has loved us.

When we think of what it means to love as Jesus loved, our focus is drawn to Jesus and the adulterous woman at the well, the paralyzed man who had been stepped over for over thirty years, to the blind, the leprous, the poor, the dejected, the rejected, and to the disciples themselves. Jesus was in relationship with these people. To love as Jesus loved, we must look past what we see and share in the joys and sorrows of the people around us, regardless of who they are, where they’ve been, or where they might be going. If we do this, we’ll begin to discover that our own love of God has depth to it we never imagined and that we are transformed by it.

Reflection Questions:

• Where have you seen Jesus?
• How have you experienced Jesus' love?
• What would it mean for you to place yourself in a situation to love as Jesus loved?

Practices of Preparation:

• PRAYERS - ask God for the boldness and courage to love as Jesus loved
• PRESENCE - step outside of your comfort zone to have a conversation with someone about their day
• GIFTS - visit United Methodist Committee on Relief and see how the gifts of this church go to spreading the love of Jesus throughout the world.
• SERVICE - ask the person next to you in worship how you can pray for them
• WITNESS - share with someone how you experienced God by practicing one of these four things listed above

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

How Do We Talk About Hope?

Two of our sessions in Adult Confirmation focused on sin and hope. It is easy for us to talk about sin because of how rapidly our eyes and attention are drawn to the consequences of sin. In just one segment of broadcast news, we're likely to hear a report about police brutality, labor conflict, political oppression, etc. Because of how prevalent this bad fruit is, hope becomes more recognizable when we see and experience it. Communities and individuals forgo expenditures so they can send relief aid to Haiti, Japan, The Sudan, and countless other places where it is needed. Organizations form to care for the mentally disabled, the imprisoned, or those who struggle with addiction. These are fruits of hope.

How though, as disciples of Jesus Christ, do we talk about hope? How do we explain to someone who is un-churched, de-churched, over-churched, or just-the-right-amount-of-churched (whatever that means) that our hope is founded in something far deeper than mere charity or goodwill? If someone were to ask you what the difference was between your church and the United Way or UNICEF, what would your response be? The way that we communicate speaks just as much as what we try to say. 

In Session 6, "Salvation and the Solution of Hope," the table groups did an exercise from Romans 3:21-31 [an exercise borrowed from my friend and colleague Rev. Will Rice]. They were asked to paraphrase this selection of text without using the words: RIGHTEOUS, RIGHTEOUSNESS, RECONCILE, RECONCILIATION, JUSTIFY, JUSTIFIED, ATONE, ATONEMENT, GRACE or FAITH. Most of these words are used frequently in our churches; you might even say they are "church words." The point of the exercise was to help us talk about salvation - the source of our hope - with someone for whom "church words" aren't a part of their normal vocabulary.

Here is how some of the groups responded:

• Everyone has sinned and everyone is a sinner. Those sins have been forgiven through belief in Christ. Christ was a sacrifice presented for us from God whose blood cleansed us from these sins. God is a God for everyone, alike and different.
• We have all sinned. God has freed us from sin through the blood of Jesus Christ. All we have to do is accept Jesus Christ as our Savior. We are not bound by law. We do not earn this great gift by works. All we have to do is believe. This gift is open to all. Our belief is not an excuse to break the law, but a reason to uphold the law.

This was a tough exercise, and I am really proud of their work. For those of us who've been a part of congregations for a long time, we sometimes forget that much of the world doesn't speak using "church words." As much as this exercise helped us better understand our salvation, we need to be reminded that part of salvation in Christ Jesus means we share it with others. How can we share our hope if we aren't sure how to talk about it?

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Adult Confirmation - Session 7: Sanctification and Our Wesleyan Heritage

A summary of Session 6 will be posted later this week, but here is the look ahead for next week's session:

Prayer of the Week:
Lord God in Heaven, You humbled Yourself upon the cross so that we might be exalted in heaven. Through Your Son we have been given new life, and through the movement of Your Holy Spirit, we experience Your perfecting grace. Give us the will to submit ourselves to You each day, that we might live our lives transformed and bear witness to our salvation. Amen.

Opening Thoughts:
The 18th century was arguably one of the most chaotic, transformative centuries in history. The European continent was ravaged by on-going wars. Empires in the Middle East and South Asia were rising and falling, and colonization of the Americas, Africa, and the South Pacific dominated the economic and political thinking of the time. This was a century of turmoil was spawned tremendous bursts of creative energy from musicians, thinkings, writers, and artists. It was an era of rapid change both in landscape and world-view, and the church was no exception.

In England, there was an Anglican priest who was led by God to preach The Gospel to the people who were being tossed and battered by this change. John Wesley began a movement within the Church of England that expanded throughout the country and across the sea that was centered on salvation by grace through faith. He created and implemented a systematic approach to discipleship - the process of growing in grace - so that as hundreds and thousands of people entered into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ; they could be formed into His disciples. The focus for this week of study, discussion and exercise is to explore our heritage as United Methodists, our call to intentional discipleship, and the movement of God's grace among us, so that we may better understand who it is God has called us to be in the world.

Suggested Scripture Readings:

• Exodus 34:29-35 - "The Shining Face of Moses"
• Joshua 5:1-9 - "The New Generation Circumcised"
• 1 Samuel 16:1-13 - "David Anointed as King"
• Matthew 10:5-15 - "The Mission of the Twelve"
• Romans 5:1-11 - "Results of Justification"
• Philippians 3:12-4:1 - "Pressing Toward the Goal"
• Hebrews 12:1-13 - "The Example of Jesus"

Reflection Questions:

• What does it mean to grow in faith?
• How do you know whether or not you are growing in faith?
• Read Ephesians 2. What does this tell us about God? About us? About our relationship?
• Read the "Wesleyan Core Term" attached to Ephesians 2. What is more difficult for you, loving God or loving your neighbor?
• Reflect on where you were in your faith at the beginning of Adult Confirmation. Does your faith look different now?

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Lenten Study Companion - Week 3

"When Jesus had come down from the mountain, great crowds followed him; and there was a leper who came to him and knelt before him, saying, 'Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean.' He stretched out his hand, and touched him saying, 'I do choose. Be made clean.' Immediately his leprosy was cleansed."

Matthew 8:1-3

Under Jewish law, if you were leprous, you were isolated from the rest of the community and condemned unclean. To be unclean was to be unholy, and the furthest away from God that someone could be. A person afflicted with leprosy was socially and spiritually dead [see Leviticus 13-14]. So when Jesus comes down the mountain and is approached by a leper, He is being approached by someone beyond the fringes of society.

We hear the leper's words not as a questioning of Jesus' healing power, but instead as a profession of faith - "Lord, you can make me clearn" - and in response to the man's faith, Jesus cleanses him. What occurs here is more significant than just a changing of a skin condition. Jesus took a man who was, for all intents and purposes, dead to the world, and resurrected him, so to speak, giving him new life and enabling him to share in the community of faith.

Each of us, regardless of our upbringing, ailments, or socio-economic status, have either felt dead to the world or have been dead to the world at some point in time in our lives. Yet, we come to understand that we have been offered life anew in Christ Jesus; not that we would keep that life to ourselves, but that we would share in this joy with one another and spread this good news. Jesus' own death and resurrection are an example to us that our sufferings, be they grand or small, cannot conquer the love and will of God.

Reflection Questions:

• Who do you know that is experiencing life on the fringes of society? How have you engaged them?
• When you pray for God's action in your life, is your prayer a questioning of God's ability to act or a profession of faith that God can act?
• How have situations in your life affected the way that you pray in this way?

Practices of Preparation:

• PRAYERS - take time to in your prayers to audibly profess your faith, even if you aren't sure of how strong or weak it is
• PRESENCE - drive or walk around your neighborhood - work or home - and reflect on where the fringes of society are in your midst
• GIFTS - give a can of food or an extra dollar as a part of your offering to assist the McFarlin Food Pantry and Utilities Assistance programs
• SERVICE - call or visit someone who know who is feeling "dead to the world"
• WITNESS - share with someone how you experienced God by practicing one of these four things listed above

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Adult Confirmation - Session 6: Salvation and the Solution of Hope

It would have been my preference to combine Session 5: Sin and the Problem of Evil with next week's session, but unfortunately, there are only so many hours on a Sunday evening...or any evening for that matter. It is almost impossible to talk about salvation without also talking about sin, and while it possible to talk about sin without talking about salvation, there isn't much point unless you want to simply depress someone. Our lesson and conversation this past week was difficult at times, and caused all of us to interact with and address some questions which we too often just prefer to ignore. But, as expected, we closed out our time already with our hearts and minds shifting towards to the promise of redemption, reconciliation, and our everlasting hope in Christ Jesus. In preparation for next Sunday evening, here is the handout for Session 6: Salvation and the Solution of Hope:

Prayer for the Week:
Holy Father, you have blessed us and given us dominion over all the earth. Increase our reverence for life and give us deeper insight into your purposes. Grant us the wisdom and determination to be agents of your grace, that through the workings of the Holy Spirit within us, the world may share in our hope - the eternal joy of salvation in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Opening Thoughts:
We have all hoped for things throughout our lives - toys, cars, test scores, relationships, etc. These are unique items that perhaps not everyone around us wishes they had, but which we have desired so that we may cherish, find delight in, and share (or not, depending on the toy). Yet when we place our hope in these things, we often find ourselves disappointed, frustrated, or confused. Toys break, cars age, test scores fail, and even our relationships can crumble.

The consequences of our sin cause turmoil in our lives and in the lives of others. These consequences are instability and hurt which we often cannot comprehend. But, we have been given hope; a hope upon which we can place the fullness of our expectations and it will not fail us. We have been offered redemption and salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ! The focus for this week of study, discussion, and exercise is to explore the atoning work of The Cross, God's reconciling action in the world, and how we begin to grow in this grace so that we may continue to spread and share in true hope.

Suggested Scripture Readings:

• Genesis 3:20-24 - "The First Sin and Its Punishment"
• Exodus 6:1-13 - "Israel's Deliverance Assured"
• Psalm 141 - "Prayer for Preservation from Evil"
• John 3 - "Nicodemus Visits Jesus"
• Romans 8:31-39 - "God's Love in Christ Jesus"
• 1 Corinthians 15:35-58 - "The Resurrection Body"
• 1 Peter 1:3-12 - "A Living Hope"

Reflection Questions:

• What does it mean to be in a right relationship with God?
• How is your life affected by Jesus' death and resurrection?
• Think of a time in your life when you have wished for something with all your might. think of how that wish/desire affected your relationships with others. How did you communicate this hope?
• What feelings do you have about sharing the hope of salvation in Christ Jesus with someone else - whether that person is a family member, friend or complete stranger?

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Lenten Study Companion - Week 2

"The apostles said to the Lord, 'Increase our faith!' The Lord replied, 'If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you'."

Luke 17:5-6

If we go back and read from the beginning of this chapter in The Gospel of Luke, we discover that this passage is connected to a much larger message than having depth in faith. Jesus has recounted a number of illustrations teaching on forgiveness. It is interesting then that the disciples response is not, “Help us forgive,” but is instead, “Increase our faith!”

They rightfully understand that forgiving one another is a matter of faith, but even so, they have still missed Jesus’ point. The disciples assume that we must have a great deal of faith in order to forgive someone, and so, they cry out for more. Jesus responds by teaching them that they have yet to realize the fullness of faith – a faith which enables them to work in powerful ways contrary to the very laws that seemingly govern this world.

When we think about this extraordinary gift applied to the lives of one another, imagine the healing, comfort, and forgiveness that we can give one another because of faith. Jesus has called us to be agents of His grace in the world. If we have experienced grace in forgiveness from God, we are compelled to then pass that grace (through faith) along to others. Forgiveness is not about us; it is about God.

Reflection Questions:

• Think of a time when you were wronged or wronged another, how would the apology and forgiveness look if it was about God rather than yourself?
• Read Matthew 13:31-32. What connections do you find between faith and fruitfulness?
• How would you share this lesson with someone using a more modern illustration?

Practices of Preparation:

• PRAYERS - pray for those who are struggling with their faith, whether they know they are or not
• PRESENCE - spend time with someone from the church who isn't a family member
• GIFTS - keep a log of what you spend for three days, on the fourth day, make an offering to the church that is more than one of the expenditures on your list
• SERVICE - practice "mustard seed" forgiveness
• WITNESS - share with someone how you experienced God by practicing one of the four things listed above

Yours, 

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Adult Confirmation - Session 5: Sin and the Problem of Evil

An important component to offering any sort of reoccurring study opportunity is providing time and space for feedback. At the beginning of our last session, I did just that, and one of the items which came up was a desire to post the handouts used each week in preparation for the upcoming lesson. Below is the handout from the session we just covered:

Prayer for the Week:

Lord, everywhere we look, everywhere we turn we see violence, chaos, infirmity, and injustice. Give us the will, heart, and mind to be agents of Your grace in this world, to be vessels of hope filled with Your Holy Spirit, Your love, and Your peace. Calm the restless and troubled, heal the broken and the sick, bring to justice those who oppress and abuse. You are our King, let us be a people of mercy. Amen.

Opening Thoughts:

We can turn on the television and within five minutes, we will be inundated with images that remind us of the broken world in which we live. Some of these scenes can be directly attributed to the evil doings of wretched men and women; others seem simply to occur because of the way in which nature has been ordered. Each of us had had a time in our lives when we've asked, "Why?!" We've inquired, time and time again, of a problem whose origins begin with our own narrative, and whose solution we ourselves cannot bring to bear.

We cannot share in the Easter resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, unless we are first willing to come to terms with the fact that the wages of our sin are death, and that price had to be paid. Our call to be agents of God's grace in the world necessarily means that we must confront the reality of sin on a regular basis. The focus for this week of study, discussion, and exercise is to explore how sin shapes our lives, the lives of those around us, and our world-view. We do this in an effort to understand the costly call of our discipleship, and the charge for us to be ministers of hope, healing, and grace.

Suggested Scripture Readings:

• Genesis 3 - "The First Sin and Its Punishment"
• Genesis 6:5-8 - "The Wickedness of Humankind"
• Leviticus 4 - "Sin Offerings"
• Psalm 50 - "The Acceptable Sacrifice"
• Luke 23:26-43 - "The Crucifixion of Jesus"
• Romans 6:15-23 - "Slaves of Righteousness"
• 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 - "The Ministry of Reconciliation"

Reflection Questions:

• Is there a difference between "evil" and "sin?" If so, what is it?
• Nowhere in Genesis 3-11 is the word "sin" used. What is sin?
• What purpose do you find in the sin offering being both precise and gruesome?
• There are many examples in Scripture and in our own lives of our actions causing calamity, disorder, and hurt to one another. How then are we to understand natural events (hurricanes, famine, floods, etc.) which cause the same thing?
• Practically, how can you be engaged in the ministry of reconciliation?

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

 

Systematic Discipleship and Community

A great challenge for many churches, and especially churches the size of McFarlin, is being able to effectively keep track of everyone in the congregation. It is difficult to know where someone is spiritually if we don't know where they are physically. For example, McFarlin has over 5,300 members on its rolls, an active membership of roughly 1,200, weekly worship attendance around 850, and roughly 690 in Sunday school (at all age levels). How can we know who is attending worship but not Sunday school? Or is involved in the church somehow, but doesn't regularly attend worship? What about the 4,000 men and women who at one point joined the church, but for whatever reason, have seemingly disappeared? It is all too real a fact that for many of us, we place much effort and energy on making our "front door" as attractive and inviting as possible, while leaving our "back door" completely unattended or neglected.

When asked, "I know someone who wants to get connected in the church, what do they need to do;" what answer do we give them? Join a Sunday school class, come to Wednesday night supper, go to the Tuesday morning Bible study, sing in the choir, go to Mexico, play in the basketball league, etc., etc. These have been our answers for years and years, and for hundreds and thousands of men and women, they were wonderful points of community and connection. Yet, especially in large churches, there is still a sizable gap between those who have come in the front door and those who have stayed once they entered. So why do we keep applying this method of connection?

McFarlin has decided it is time to try a different approach; an approach which is still very much in the developmental stages - "The Movement." Instead of connecting to any number of these small group opportunities (and yes, a 100 person choir is just as much a small group as a 4 person reunion group), we want to connect people to a process of intentional faith development. By participating in "The Movement," someone agrees to be discipled and we, as the church, agree to provide opportunities where discipleship can occur, hold them accountable to this commitment, and be held accountable ourselves. Part of this necessarily includes a system of follow-ups - e-mails, letters, lay lead care teams, and pastoral contact.

This doesn't mean Sunday school, Bible studies, choirs, sports leagues, mission trips, quilting guilds, or any of that disappears; it just means they take on a different role within the community of faith. Instead of being disciple-making opportunities, they become intentional experiences of care and community, supporting the faith development efforts of the church, and providing men and women a place to practice and live out their faith.

Will this completely close the "back door?" Probably not, but we're going to give it a try. At the very least, we'll begin to get a more clear picture of where people are - physically and spiritually - which will help us be more effective in living out our call to make disciples of Jesus Christ.

Yours,
Michael C. Andres
Director of Discipleship

Lenten Study Companion - Week 1

For the 2011 Lenten Season, our pastors, in both our traditional sanctuary services as well as our contemporary Lifeline service, will lead us in a sermon series entitled "If..." The idea behind this series is to look at Jesus' teachings in the Gospels that begin with this powerful conditional part of speech. For example, the first sermon in this series is from Mark 8:34 - "He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, 'If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me'."

In addition to this series, we have developed a small study companion that the congregation can use throughout the week that correlates to the sermon. Here is this week's Lenten Study Companion:

----------

Many of us understand Lent as a time of year where for forty days we give something up – chocolate, Facebook, fast food, late night television and so forth. This season of sacrifice is important; it helps redirect our focus to God. Some men and women reach a point in their faith where they practice this sort of sacrifice weekly or sometimes bi-weekly; going from sunrise to sunset consuming nothing but water or the occasional glass of fruit juice.

However, there is a distinction we must make between sacrifice and the spiritual discipline of fasting. We tend to think of sacrifice as “going without,” whereas in fasting, we are wise to think of it as “going with.” We don’t sacrifice during Lent to demonstrate to God that we can go without the pleasures of this world; we fast so that we may open ourselves up to go with God. When we rid our lives of just a fraction of the noise and volume with which they are so filled, we create an opportunity for our own hearts and minds to hear the whispering guidance and comfort of the Holy Spirit.

Lent is a time of readying ourselves for the crucifixion and death of Jesus the Christ, just as much as it is a time of preparing for the celebration of The Resurrection. To deny ourselves and to take up our crosses is to engage in a life of “going with,” of allowing our words, thoughts and deeds to be informed and guided by the movement of God’s grace.

Reflection Questions:

• What distracts you most from experiencing God’s movement within you and in the world around you?
• What might God be speaking to you in the quietness of your heart? Or through the words of a friend or loved one?
• Read the next verse in this passage, Mark 8:35. How do you feel about the idea of having to “lose your life” in order to save it?

Practices of Preparation:

• PRAYERS - pray for the lay, staff, and clergy leadership of the church
• PRESENCE - come to a church event this week in addition to worship
• GIFTS - offer to buy a stranger's meal or cup of coffee
• SERVICE - open the door for someone and instead of saying "thank you," say "may God bless you"
• WITNESS - share with someone how you experienced God by practices one of the four things listed above

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Adult Confirmation - Session 4: The Holy Spirit

Our main time of discussion in this week's session was centered around the question: "How have you experienced the Holy Spirit?" Each of the table groups spent about ten to fifteen minutes sharing with one another their responses to this question. Since our class is quite diverse in terms of faith background, there was a possibility that some people may not have had an answer to this question, while others may have had an entire catalog of these moments. Here are two of the experiences members of the class shared:

Shannon - Movie Theater Nudge
Her son had gone to see a movie with a group of friends, and right before the movie began, an attendant came through the aisles to perform a ticket check. Unfortunately Shannon's son had thrown his stub away, and was then kicked out of the theater. Standing outside, while all his friends remained, he called her to inform her about the situation. On her way to the theater, she began to get more and more angry that her son had done what was right, by paying for admission, but was being punished for it, while others had gained entry dishonestly. She thought of all the things she wanted to unleash on the management and attendant, but by the time she arrived at the theater, a calmness had come over her. She'd been reminded of her Bible study lesson from that week - do not take vengeance. The Holy Spirit had moved within her, to direct her thoughts, speech, and action towards being more Christlike. When she picked up her son, she spoke with the attendant and management, but rather than yell and fuss, they were able to have a civil and productive dialog.

Mike - From Norman to Christchurch
Mike's family is friends with another family whose daughter is blind. In order to be able to share in community with other blind men and women, she had joined a voice-prompted social network online. One of the people she had begun to develop a friendship with lived in New Zealand. After not receiving any messages from her friend for several days, she felt led to give her friend a call. On the other end, her friend, audibly distressed and in pain, answered. She had been trapped under rubble following the earthquake which rocked Christchurch days before. For whatever reason, her phone had not been able to make or receive calls, and she had given up hope of being found. But then, Mike's friend here in Norman called and it went through. The woman in New Zealand, being blind, was able to give an exact of her location - each step counted, purposed, remembered. From Norman, Mike's friend was able to lead rescue workers directly to her friend's location, where they were able to save her and get her the medical attention she needed.

The Holy Spirit's movement within and among us is powerful. Whether it is the small prompting reminding us of the Scripture we'd read earlier in the day, or as grand as an unprovoked call which saved someone's life, we all are participants in the movement of God's grace.

How is it that you have experienced the Holy Spirit?

Yours,
Michael C. Andres
Director of Discipleship

More Than an Information Exchange

Just about every church has some sort of program or opportunity for people to study the Bible. Every church, in some way, shape or form, is engaged in faith development - discipleship. But if we stop and look, how many of these programs and opportunities actually equip the men and women involved to be engaged in their own discipleship? How many of our studies are just mere information or faith exchanges?

One of the best things church leaders can do for their congregations is to marry the how-to of studying Scripture with their studies, small groups, and Sunday school classes. If Mom had not taught me to cook, my diet would consist solely of convenient and fast foods. Would I die from lack of nutrition? Absolutely not, but over time I'd end up with an amply soft mid-section and a number of other health issues. Why would we expect something different in our discipleship?

Just as a cook gathers their ingredients before preparing a meal, they also gather the equipment and tools they'll need. For us, in our faith development - discipleship - there are tools which we too can assemble to help us better understand, wrestle with, and live out The Gospel. One of them is a study Bible, and in Adult Confirmation, each participant is given their own copy of The Wesley Study Bible.

This is a great resource that supplements the Biblical text with commentary, scholarship, and practical application from Methodist theologians and pastors. As with any study Bible, it is important to remember that the text in the margins, footnotes, and commentary are not Scripture. They are words which help us understand passages that don't make sense, enlighten us about customs and peoples from eras long before our own, and guide us towards living our lives worthy of The Gospel.

Before Adult Confirmation began back in January, the senior leadership team of the church made an intentional decision to make this investment. We can't expect the men and women of our church to grow in their faith - to engage in becoming disciples of Jesus Christ - if we aren't equipping them with the teaching AND the tools to do so.

Yours,
Michael C. Andres
Director of Discipleship

Adult Confirmation - Session 3: Jesus, Human + Divine

When we study Jesus and His ministry, there is a tendency for us to focus on just one aspect of His being. We find comfort in looking to Jesus the man; a man who laughed and cried, and who went through experiences and emotions not all that dissimilar to our own. At the same time, we are drawn to Jesus' divinity in the miracles He performed in order to find our own healing and hope. Yet, we cannot become fully formed disciples of Jesus Christ unless we partake in His fullness as the Word of God enfleshed - not just one half or another.

This intersection of humanity and divinity is prominent in Jesus' teachings. One of the main vehicles for these lessons were parables. These parables were illustrations that took imagery and substance that the men and women of 1st century Palestine would have understood, and infused them with powerful and transformational spiritual wisdom. Take for example this passage from Luke 13:18-19, 

"He said therefore, 'What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches'."

For us today, this illustration doesn't necessarily make a lot of sense (unless you're in the agriculture business). When we read these parables in Scripture, rather than pass over them when they don't make sense, let's pause, figure out what the message is, and try to put it into modern terms. This was the exercise our table groups did this past Sunday. Here is some of their work:

Matthew 18:10-14, "The Parable of the Lost Sheep"

• Point: Everyone is worth the same in God's eyes.
• Example: As a teacher, you have a classroom of twenty-five children, and twenty-three of the children understand the concept being taught. The teacher won't just settle on the twenty-three who were able to get it, but would make sure that the remaining two children did as well.

Luke 18:9-14, "The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector"

• Point: Don't give generously to draw attention to yourself. Give generously to draw attention to God.
• Example: A successful business man is close to retirement, and one of his last acts is giving $25 million to build a new education facility with his name on it, so that all who enter its doors know of his generosity. At the same time an oil man is also near retirement, and likewise, gives $25 million to build an education facility. The difference is that he does so anonymously. 

How can we partake in the wisdom of God if we skip over the parts we don't understand? This exercise was challenging, but rewarding. We would do well to not be fearful of the things which we can't comprehend, and instead prepare our hearts and minds to experience the fullness of Jesus Christ, the Word of God enfleshed.

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Adult Confirmation - Session 2: God + Creation

"When God began to create the heavens and the earth..."
"I believe in God the Father Almighty..."

These two opening phrases from Genesis and The Apostles' Creed respectively connect us with the first identifier of God - God as Creator. From the grains of sand on the beach to the gaseous star-birthing nebula light years away, all of it has come to be through the creative will of God. There is nothing in creation which can supplant God in word, thought or deed. And out of all of God's purposed creation, we are the ones who have been designated and tasked to be co-laborers with God, to exercise our own creative energies in stewardship and love of creation.

As a part of this responsibility, there is consequence. In Genesis 2, Adam is charged with naming creation; whatever something is named, that is what it shall be named. For example, Adam could have named an elephant, "Flappy Ear Tusk Trunker," and rather than God, ever so gently, encouraging Adam to pick a less cartoonish name, the name would have been allowed to stay. The point isn't about Adam naming every species in every genus; rather, the results of our decisions stand. There is consequence - for good or for bad - in being co-laborers in the Kingdom of God.

In exercising and sharing in this creative endeavor, we share in the results. Yet, because we are not God, our decisions and actions don't always align with God's creative and purposed will. The consequences of these erroneous decisions and actions - sin - have divided us from God, and upset the order of creation. We are a people in need of redemption; to have our relationship with God restored. This is why our redemptive narrative cannot simply begin with "In a manager..." In order for us to understand more thoroughly who we are, whose we are, and our call as co-laborers, we must trace our narrative back to "In the beginning..."

There was much, much more that we could have discussed and shared in exploration of "God + Creation." I am excited for our future sessions, and for the continued thoughtful and earnest discovery that will come in sharing in God's Word together!

Yours,
Michael C. Andres
Director of Discipleship

Adult Confirmation - Session 1: Introduction

Last Sunday evening was the first meeting of The Adult Confirmation Class, a new joint effort between the Discipleship and Youth Ministries of our church. Like the first day of school, I was both nervous and excited for this new phase in the life of the church to begin, and sure enough, the Holy Spirit's movement within the church compelled twenty-five men and women to take this next step in their faith journey. From lifelong disciples wanting to revisit their roots, to new Christians just beginning, we were a diverse group.

After reviewing our syllabus and set of expectations, I had the class join me in an exercise called "lectio divina" (holy reading). Our Scripture reading came from John 15:1-11, and the participants were given the following instructions for each reading:

• 1st Reading - Allow the words to wash over you and try not to concentrate on specifics
• 2nd Reading - Listen for a word or phrase that stands out to you, hold onto it briefly, but then let it go
• 3rd Reading - Listen for that same word or phrase again, and this time give thought as to why it was that word or phrase that came to you
• 4th Reading - Take that word or phrase and pray it 

The group shared what God revealed to them in the reading and reflection. We were amazed by the variety of  ways through which God spoke to us from the same set of words. While we will be reading from specific passage in regards to specific topics throughout the course, the ways in which God will speak to us and reveal His wisdom to us will look different to each of us. However, through our times of sharing, our experiences become one voice, and the Word of God will indeed be affirmed. 

It was indeed wonderful that there were more people than than we had chairs, but what is truly cause to celebrate and rejoice was that the men and women in that room left with a new passion to know and delve into God's Word. I am greatly looking forward to these next ten weeks!

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship

Word of Welcome

Greetings to you all! Beginning tonight, January 30^th, we will begin a new phase in the life and ministry of McFarlin Church. This church’s history is no doubt rich and vibrant, bearing witness to the power of the Holy Spirit in the community of The University of Oklahoma, the city of Norman, and across the globe. The mission of our congregation is to respond to God’s call, to seek to live lives shaped by Christ, to reach people for Christ, and to develop deeply committed Christians.

Over the course of the past year, our pastors and staff have been praying, discerning, and heeding God’s call for our congregation to increase its focus on disciple making – for our children, youth, and adults. However, becoming a disciple does not occur ad hoc. As Methodists, our heritage and understanding of Scripture inform us that becoming a disciple is not only a process, but that it is a specific type of process; that there are methods (ever wonder why we’re called Methodists?) or systematic approaches to developing disciples.  

We are not just focused on developing deeply committed Christians, but rather developing disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. We believe that the way we approach adult discipleships is through a series of courses and service opportunities called “The Movement.” It is our job to help each adult, from the time they leave high school until they enter the church triumphant, KNOW God, GROW in faith, and LIVE life transformed.

In this space, you can follow summaries of the lessons from the courses which we believe most effectively equip and teach people to KNOW, GROW, and LIVE. More importantly, you can follow the stories of men and women, youth and children, pastors and staff, as they experience the movement of God’s grace and become agents of that grace to the world.

I invite you now, on behalf of the leadership of McFarlin, in conjunction with the United Methodist Church, and for the sake of The Gospel, to come and join The Movement!

Yours,

Michael C. Andres

Director of Discipleship