Christian Isolationism

I attended a church event last weekend with an unchurched friend. It's always interesting to see us through someone else's eyes, and I love hanging out with straight-talking non-believers. You know, we really can be an odd bunch of people.

We speak a unique language called "Christianese" and we sing songs about blood and bruises and blindness. Our concerns are not the same as the burdens of the world, and my friend had a difficult time understanding a few things.

A well-known Hollywood actor spoke at last weekend's event. At one point she opened the floor up to audience questions. The attendees wanted to know which actors were Christians and how to get their children involved in God-endorsed film projects.

This line of questioning greatly offended my friend. She couldn't quite understand how it is that we talk about being salt and light in the world, and yet work so hard to isolate ourselves from the very people who need the salt and light. 

She's got a good point.

I remember an old camp song called, "Pass It On". The song begins with the words, "It only takes a spark to get a fire going, and soon all those around can warm up in its glowing." We used to sing that song like we believed it. But do we?

We preach sermons, teach classes, write blog posts, and challenge our kids to take the light of Jesus into a dark world. And yet, we can be the biggest isolationists. So, it's okay to be an actor, but only if we work with other believing actors in Christian film projects? What about doctors, lawyers, teachers, singers, and garbage collectors? Are they expected to treat, defend, teach, entertain, and serve believers only?

We talk about being an ocean of love, but many of us feel safer on our own island of like-minded separatists.  

Yes, I love seeing us through the eyes of the unchurched. They challenge me to get off the pew of isolationism, and walk in the light of truth. Pass it on.

Oscar Thanks

Why hadn't I noticed it before? Among the beautiful gowns, the awkward hosts, the swearing, the political grand-standing, and the tiny slips of paper tucked neatly in the palms of sweating hands, I'd missed it until now. And such a glaring omission too.

I don't think a single honoree at the recent Academy Awards ceremony said thank you to God.

I've become accustomed to hearing the rappers, country legends, and rock music relics give thanks to God as they tearfully clutch their paper-weight/award. The words "Thank you to God" are as common a sound at the Grammy and country music award shows as the orchestral play-off. Not so at the Oscar bash.

When I was a child the church taught me it was a sin to go to movies. My parents took us to drive-in theaters, however. Perhaps there'd be less chance of getting caught there. By the way, I really miss the days when one could carry a butter-soaked brown bag of popcorn from home to the movies. But I digress.

Is God truly not invited into moviedom, or is the Hollywood community just more honest about the absence of God than are music artists? I wonder, is "Thank you God" just something musicians say because it's expected, or is the Holy Spirit more welcome in Nashville, Austin, and Branson than in Beverly Hills, Burbank, and Los Angeles?

I don't know the answers to those questions, but I do know that the smallest flicker of light can permeate any darkness. If the Holy Spirit is really absent in movie star circles, it's not because He doesn't want to be there, it's because He hasn't been invited.

I know there's a vibrant community of believers in Hollywood. They get hushed a lot. I'm sure they'd appreciate our prayers for them as they are real Daniels in what can be a real lion's den.

Look around. Much of the world's population moves through their routines everyday with nary a whispering of God's name. The "mission field" is not on another continent in another hemisphere. The mission field is right under your nose--in your own home, workplace, grocery store, and church pew.

Where there is light there cannot be darkness. God is alive and well--even in Hollywood. Now get off the pew and invite the light into the darkness. Keep today's "Daniels" in your prayers--the ones in faraway places, and the ones next door and around the corner.

Betrayal Happens

“If you haven’t been betrayed in the church, you’ve been living on a desert island.” Dan Allender, author of Leading with a Limp: Take Full Advantage of Your Most Powerful Weakness and Leading with a Limp: Turning Your Struggles into Strengths. In February Willow Creek Community Church in Barrington, Illinois hosted an arts conference for Christian artists, which was simulcast all across the country. Speakers, pastors, and teachers are given permission to speak truth at conferences and retreats in ways they can’t from their own pulpit. Dan Allender was one of the presenters at the arts conference, and this was just one of his many quotes that punched me right in the gut. Church betrayal is a reality that is so often hushed in the local churches. Look, bring this truth out into the light so we can deal with it. There is freedom that comes when we acknowledge the truth of our weaknesses and then work together towards change and strength.

Willow Creek Community Church is a vibrant, growing church. While the focus of their attention has shifted a bit in recent years (wisely so), they still seem as determined as ever to give the artist a place to serve in the body of Christ. I grew up in a church where drums were not allowed in the church sanctuary, and going to the movies was strongly discouraged. I was not allowed to take dance lessons as a child because dancing was “against our religion”, and the idea of ever performing a play or monologue on the church platform was stuff of which fairy tales were made! The gift of eternal life is the most amazing gift God ever gave His kids, but talent is a close second. Whether you are an actor, dancer, painter, builder, architect, gardener, clothing designer, or short order cook, you are an artist. If you create – you are an artist.

There has been, is, and always will be a huge amount of discourse in the arts based ministries of the church. The reasons for this phenomenon are many and varied, but one thing that cannot be disputed – the heart of the artist is a sensitive one, and working with artists requires great patience and wisdom. I’ve heard people refer to the theatre as “the devil’s playground”, rock and roll as “the devil’s music”, and Hollywood as “the devil’s home”. Listen, no matter how dark the room, God’s light will always break through! It is our job to bring God’s light into the darkness. WE have kept God out of the arts. WE have done that! God does not want to be left out. We say, “Until the whole world knows”, but then we parenthetically add, “except Hollywood and The Ice Capades – no good Christian would be caught dead there.” God has called the artist to go into the art jungle!

The music and/or arts department at church is as much a jungle as the farthest corner of Africa, or the tiniest island of Indonesia. When I see betrayal happen in the church, I see it happen most often in the music and/or arts department. We argue over music styles, stage time, and the relevance of skits and dramas in the service. We disagree over the ratio of ability vs. heart (this is a whole other topic!), and we make assumptions about one another’s motivations. The artist is overly sensitive, wildly passionate, and sometimes emotionally volatile. Instead of focusing on the strengths, working through disagreements, and coming together as a team, we resort to all forms of betrayal. Shame on us!

Get off the pew and speak the truth! Betrayal happens! That is the truth! Don’t hide from it, don’t sweep it under the sanctuary carpet or bury it under the thrust stage. Deal with it! Get off the pew and deal with it.