Being in a church leadership role is far from easy. While I have never been employed in such a position, I have had the privilege of watching many mentors and colleagues move through the process. Some have even trusted me enough to share with me the trials and frustrations that come with the administration, guidance, and pressure for church-wide-rejuvenation that is necessary to govern a church body effectively. I know the career path Bo and I have chosen will be far from always-guaranteed smooth sailing. But if we reflect on characters from the bible-Jesus in particular-we find that the struggle is nothing new. We are not called to a life of easy answers, kittens, and marshmallows. We are called to travel the bumpy, confusing and troubling roads of which life often consists.

We are not called to lead others into believing that the moment they allow Christ into their hearts that all of their worries will disappear. I think for those of us who have lived a privileged life (privileged in the sense that we have food to eat, a family who loves us unconditionally, health care, a roof over our heads, heat that works, etc.) up until this point in our lives find that difficult to process. "What heresy is this! How dare you say that Christianity/God cannot right all the wrongs of this earth!"

That's not what I said.

I fully believe God can and will right all of the wrongs that have been committed on this earth because I believe my God embodies the ultimate expression of love and eventual restoration.
What I said was we are not called to preach a message of hope that falsely teaches others that the pains and the hurts of this life will somehow go away entirely should they invite Christ into their hearts. By sharing the Word and Spirit of God with others, we are merely promising that those who will hear us out are not going their road of despair and anguish alone and that all things will eventually be restored by God.

This blog post is what fueled the fire for this discussion about the prosperity gospel this morning:  

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pastor-rick-henderson/osteen-meyer-prosperity-gospel_b_3790384.html

It's a little long, but it is honestly worth the read. While there are parts where I feel as though the author is treading awfully close to crossing the line between teaching by using examples and condemning the people who use said examples, this article gives some perspective into why it is so important that ministerial leaders do not take the easy way out. It is absolutely unacceptable to promise our congregants that if they do [blank] or give [blank] amount of money, that their lives will change drastically for the better. It is not only unethical (Please see the video included from John Piper about the prosperity gospel--particularly the part that begins at 5:05), but it is false teaching. It is also absurd for us to create false disconnects between us and our congregants--telling them that we have been given some profound gift of prophecy and the like-- in order to give ourselves erroneous credibility and/or power over them.

Our foundation, our tradition, the stories of people who struggled and flourished in their faith before us lies within the bible. Am I one of those who believes the bible is completely infallible? Absolutely not. However, I know that reading it and preaching from within it is a crucial part of what it means to lead Christian congregations because the word is divinely inspired; it still moves and is still relevant to how we understand God and our world today. Yes, it was written by humans who we know to be imperfect; however, taking time to spend with the Word opens a window to where God's presence and Spirit dwell. 

We have a better sense of the desperation and longing for hope in our world based on the laments of the psalmist. We better understand the duty to walk with those whom the world shoves to the margins because Jesus walked with those persons in his ministry. We love because John lets us know very plainly that God loved us first. God still loves us and is residing among us.

But when we move to preaching false doctrine because it's easy and we're viewing our call through a lens of what WE can gain from the easy "message" we share...we are stifling God from being made known. We are stifling God from breathing new life-- God's pneuma--into this broken world.

God is here; therefore, there is good in the world. But when leaders in the church put our own agendas ahead of God's, we. are. lost. And the people who look to us for guidance and love and hope and knowledge...they're just as lost as we are, if not more.

No. We are not called to a false sense of easiness in our ministries. We are called to embrace this life, and its reality. Every last bit of the ugly, as well as the good. And by forming relationships with those who are lost where the light and hope of Christ is not so easily noticed, we are able to teach the true message of our God. The message that, "Love never fails." That God is with us and is not some far-away being that we only have the hopes of being reunited with one day. God is here. God is now. And we, ministerial leaders, are called to help those who are afflicted--in our congregations, in our communities, in other states and countries, those across the world--so that the message of being servants, grace, and love envelopes those who cannot find their way out of the hurt.

We are called to form loving, solidarity-standing, rightly-related communities. That means being real with each other. That means acknowledging the bad and working together to help ease the suffering of others. That, in its essence, is what it's all about. If we do not make it our priority to share God's love with others through correct teaching and through authentic relationships, we are not teaching anything substantial. We are not teaching, loving, and being in community the way that Jesus taught us at all.

Jesus himself showed us it's not easy to be a part of (let alone lead) humble and genuine ministry, but the true sharing of love and hope is beyond the worth of the work it takes to make it all come together.

Thanks for your time, friends. Happy Thursday, one and all :)