CityWell friends and partners,
We have been updating our website, www.citywell.org, and have moved this blog to that site. Please continue to follow our story and to pray for us as God leads in this awesome adventure!
Cleve
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Monday, April 2, 2012
February Update
Dear Friends,
As mentioned in last month’s update, The CityWell has been in a fruitful season of clarifying our vision, which is to become a people who receive the ways of Jesus as our way of life, for the sake of His glory and for the sake of the world. We believe this vision calls us ever deeper into our identity as God’s people and into a way of life that (to the best of our understanding) embodies of the holistic calling of our Lord, Jesus.
The first calling of this vision is to become a people. According to Scripture the church is not a collective of autonomous individuals, but rather a body, a people whose identity is constituted by our relationship with Jesus and the relationships between us as His people. I believe it significant that when Jesus called his first disciples to follow Him He began with a plurality, calling two. There was never a moment when any individual could legitimately say, ‘It’s just me and Jesus.’ Every person Jesus called to follow Him, He called into community. Therefore, one of our central concerns is how we form our lives together such that we truly become a people, and not just a bunch of individuals who happen to see each other on Sundays.
The second component of The CityWell vision is that we receive the ways of Jesus as our way of life. This is all about discipleship, about us becoming apprentices of Jesus. According to Jesus, discipleship is the heart of everything. We are called to leave everything to follow Him, to take His yoke upon ourselves, to carry our cross for His sake, to suffer for Him, to imitate Him, to act in His name in His mission, and finally to make others disciples as well. Discipleship is the basic element of our life with Jesus, and perhaps the most elusive element in far too many people’s experience of the Church.
The third component of The CityWell vision is that we would exist for the sake of His (Jesus’) glory. Simply put, we exist to glorify God, which we do most deeply by proclaiming, in word and deed, that Jesus Christ is Lord. Therefore, we exist as a church only insofar as we are a worshiping community. However, existing as a worshiping community for the sake of Jesus’ glory implies more than our scheduled, formal worship. Rather, we must learn to see all of our lives as an act of worship, to “offer [our] bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God…” This means learning that there is no such thing as “the spiritual part of life,” for there is only life, and all of it belongs to God.
The fourth component of The CityWell vision is that we would exist for the sake of the world. The manner of our life together is to be a sign and testimony of the goodness and purposes of God, and is intended by God to be the primary means by which others come to join in the glorification of our Lord Jesus. To that end, mission is not a work of the church; mission is the cause of the church, and we would not exist without it. The mission is God’s, and God’s mission has a church. Our great privilege and task as God’s people is to join in God’s mission as we follow the Lord into the world. Our hope is that as a people who receive the ways of Jesus as our way of life… for the sake of the world, we are forming a communal context in which our friends, relatives, neighbors, co-workers and anyone God puts into our paths can discover the fulsome salvation of Jesus that encompasses every aspect of our lives, now and unto eternity.
This is the CityWell vision and we are excited to learn how to live into this as a community. Please continue praying for us, as this will certainly require the mighty hand of God!
I continue to thank God for you, for your prayers and support, and for the gift each of you have been to my family and me. I pray this update finds you well, and that today you will allow the Holy Spirit to open your eyes that you may see, your ears that you may hear, your hearts that you may feel, and your hands that you may do all that is good and pleasing in the sight of our God.
With great affection,
Cleve
March 2012 Update
Friends,
I am amazed to be writing you as to the state of affairs for The CityWell as we enter into Holy Week – this greatest of weeks in the life of the church! I can’t believe how time is flying, and as I prepare to lead our nascent church through our first Holy Week and Easter celebrations I am so grateful for God’s gift of this new church family. Along with this, I am deeply grateful for each of you and your encouragement, partnership and prayers in this grand adventure. The CityWell simply could not be without you!
So, life in the CityWell continues to be exciting and increasingly beautiful as relationships are deepening and we are growing in a shared vision and communal language and rhythms. We are presently in the final week of our first Lenten season together, and I am so thankful for God’s gifts as we have entered the disciplines over the last five weeks of examining our hearts, acknowledging our fragility, embracing our utter dependence upon God, and anticipating Easter and the new life God gives us now through Jesus’ resurrection. This has been a rich season of contemplative worship, personal testimonies, regular confession, and a growing conviction that though we all live in the midst of death, we have a steady anchor of hope in Jesus, who is acquainted with all of our suffering, who died for us and in our place, and who is yet in Himself and for us “the Resurrection and the Life!” And so we join the Apostle Paul in proclaiming: “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways… For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen (Romans 11:33-36).
The month of March saw one of the most significant developments to date in The CityWell life: the beginning of Huddles. Huddles are our most direct way of centralizing discipleship – the receiving of Jesus’ ways as our way of life – in our identity as a church. Amy and I are both leading five people each in a discipleship process that focuses very simply on learning to hear and discern God’s voice in our lives and then respond faithfully. Our method is very simple and very reproducible, and our great hope is that we will equip each of the people in these first huddles not only in the ways of discipleship, but also to lead others in this same pursuit. Disciples... who make disciples... who make disciples. We believe this is Jesus’ intention for the church. Please, please pray for us, that the Lord will anoint this process and each of these people, that The CityWell might become a truly discipleship-centered church!
Finally, as a matter of great fun, I want to share with you a picture of The CityWell. Last Friday, we enjoyed our first Open Mic Night to share our various talents with one another. I hope you will take a few minutes to follow the link to a video that will give you some idea of the beautiful diversity, gifting and joy of this new church. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlkjNHaV_0w
May our Lord who lived, suffered, died and (shh…) WAS RAISED on the third day for us, be with you, and bless you, and give you His ways to be your way of life!
Grace and peace,
Cleve
Saturday, February 4, 2012
January Update
Friends and Faithful Prayer Partners:
2012 is sure to be an interesting year if the pace of January is any indication of the months to come! I’m excited to share with you some of the wonderful things that are going on in my family as well as in The CityWell.
Many of you likely have heard that the May clan expanded on New Year’s Eve when 2-day-old Noah came to live with us. Noah is a beautiful and sweet baby boy born to teenage parents in difficult situations. He came to us as a foster-son with the hope that we might have the opportunity to adopt. This hope is now a dim one, as Noah will likely end up with someone in his biological father’s family. However, we are very grateful for the time we have with him; it is an amazing thing to love a child, whether or not they are born to you, and we have learned so much through this process about God’s heart toward us, His adopted children. So, needless to say with 2 boys under six months old in the house, life has been a bit nutty. We are profoundly encouraged, though, with the incredible support and love we receive from The CityWell family, friends from Moore County and our families. We are well loved and cared for!
On the second Sunday in January we had the joy of seeing The CityWell community baptize baby John… an awesome celebration of the grace of God displayed through the sacrament that, among other things, reminds us that it is our belonging to God through the death and resurrection of Jesus that makes it possible for us to come to faith! This is one of the driving convictions of our church; belonging precedes believing. You can imagine how such a conviction plays out in our practices of hospitality and welcoming others into our church family. Truly beautiful stuff!
January was also a month of deepening clarity for The CityWell, as the Formation Team has continued the holy work of discerning and articulating God’s vision for the church and our communal values. Mid-month we adopted four governing values that each have concrete corresponding practices; the CityWell longs to be a people who receive the ways of Jesus as our way of life by committing to lives marked by: Gathering, Listening, Offering & Welcoming.
The commitment to gathering comes as a response to the gift God gives of making us a community, a people, a family of faith. We gather to receive this gift; we gather to bear witness to it; and we gather to be transformed by it. For the CityWell, gathering has three formal expressions: Wells, Huddles, and Sunday Celebrations. Each of these serves unique purposes that all contribute toward the goal of our becoming a family and being formed as God’s people through deep relationships, an intentional discipleship process and the gifts of Word, sacrament and song.
Our commitment to listening is about hearing the voice of God through the Scripture, in prayer, through attentiveness to the Holy Spirit, and in listening to one another. Along with this, we long to be a people who love others and our city well enough to listen to them. Listening will require God to produce in us the fruit of patience, humility and gentleness.
Next is our commitment to offer ourselves to God, to one another, and to our community as a response to the incredible fact that God offers Himself to us without reserve.
Finally, we want to be a people committed to welcoming anyone and everyone into our community, because we believe this is the posture of Jesus and that it is in the community of the church that the Holy Spirit works most powerfully to transform lives into Christ-likeness.
So…. Gathering, Listening, Offering & Welcoming… We remember these commitments by the simple acronym G.L.O.W., and we believe that living into these rhythms and practices of life will lead us deeper into the life God created for us in Jesus. Please pray for us that it may be so!
For everyone who partnered with us financially in the last year, you can expect to receive a year-end contribution statement sometime in the next week. Once again, thank you so much for your support. In June of this year we will lose 1/3 of our Conference funding and will need your partnership all the more. If you have questions about how to become a financial partner in this ministry, please let me know.
I am reminded every time I write these updates of how faithful God is to do far more abundantly than all we can ask or think! What an amazing God we get to call Father! I pray that you rest in the knowledge of His love for you established and displayed in splendor through Jesus, our Lord.
Grace and peace,
Cleve
Thursday, January 26, 2012
G.L.O.W.
In November of last year a group of CityWellers began meeting weekly for the purpose of coming to a succinct articulation of who we believe Jesus is calling us to be as a church, and to tie that articulation to specific and concrete practices that will become our way of life together. This group is called our Formation Team, as they are working to form our communal rhythms and practices that we hope will reinforce our identity as the church. Our driving question has been: What are the ways of Jesus that will form our way of life?
More than ever we are convinced that we are called to so much more than just believing the right things about Jesus; we are invited to actually know Him and to allow Him to redefine every aspect of our lives. This is about receiving the ways of Jesus as our way of life… in our families, in our personal ambitions, in our work, in our encounters with every person that crosses our path, in the ways we love our neighbors and serve our city, in the ways we use and give away our money, in the ways we share life with each other and learn to live joyfully, in the ways we hold onto hope together in the midst of our suffering, and in the ways we structure our schedules so as to make room in life to be with our Lord so that we might be transformed by Him to be the people he created and redeemed us to be, that we might actually taste the abundant life Jesus came to give and become partners with God in pouring that abundance into every part of our lives and our communities! Now that is an awesome calling (and run-on sentence)!
With all of this in mind, the Formation Team adopted a framework that we hope will capture the vision God is giving us in a broad enough way to always call us forward, but in a specific enough way to help us order our lives around concrete practices that all of us can integrate into our daily lives, both together and individually. Our hope was to come up with a simple and memorable way for The CityWell to express what we are about… how the ways of Jesus are becoming our way of life.
So here it is… receiving the ways of Jesus as our way of life means The CityWell becoming a people who G.L.O.W. We will Gather, Listen, Offer and Welcome. Each of these elements of our life together is a reflection of Jesus, and each is GOOD NEWS!
Gather: The Good News is that we have been given a beautiful, communal identity! 1 Peter 2:9-10 says: But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. You could say the grand narrative of the Bible is a story about God forming a people - giving us an identity founded upon our relationship to God through Jesus and our relationships to one another. This Good News speaks to the heart of every person’s longing for connection, community, embrace, acceptance and belonging!
For The CityWell, gathering has three concrete forms, Wells, Huddles, and Worship. Each of these serves unique purposes that all contribute toward the goal of our becoming a family and being formed as God’s people through deep relationships, an intentional discipleship process and passionate worship.
Listen: The Good News is that we have a God who actually speaks to us, and a God who actually listens to us! So we are seeking to become a people who develop habits of listening to our Lord’s voice in the Scriptures, through Prayer, through attentiveness to the Holy Spirit, and in listening to one another. Along with this, we long to be a people who love others and our city well enough to listen to them. Listening will require God to produce in us the fruit of patience, humility and gentleness.
Offer: The Good News is that we have a God who offers Himself fully to us – holding nothing back! In response we seek to be a people who offer ourselves to God, and likewise offer ourselves to one another. However, offering is not only an internal affair as we seek to imitate Jesus in offering ourselves to neighbors, strangers and even enemies. Check out Romans 12 for a biblical picture of this threefold offering.
Welcome: The Good News is that God unconditionally welcomes us! In Romans 15:17, we are exhorted: welcome one another as Christ welcomed you. So, we intent to become a community that welcomes E-VER-Y-ONE!
No exceptions.
This is about becoming a people whose corporate and individual lives are marked by extravagant hospitality, who invite others into our community and into our experience of God with the hope that others may come to see God’s heart for them through us.
This is what we mean by G.L.O.W. We are not talking about any exceptional luminosity in ourselves, but rather a way of life determined by communal commitments to rhythms of Gathering, Listening, Offering and Welcoming.
This way of life is both a response to and a picture of the Gospel of Jesus, and I am convinced that the more we live into this, the more we will come to know God’s love for us, the more we will become like Jesus, the more we will have impact as Jesus’ partners and friends in our community, and the more we will experience (and share) the abundant life Jesus gives. Please join us in praying that The CityWell will, indeed, become a people who G.L.O.W!
Monday, January 2, 2012
The Gospel of Adoption
Adoption is at the heart of the Gospel. I was reminded of this beautiful truth this week in the confluence of our family receiving a foster child and two of the Lectionary texts assigned for Sunday, January 1.
New Years Eve Amy and I picked up 2-day old Noah at a local hospital, welcoming him into our family for what is yet an undetermined period of time. Where this is only a foster placement and could end at any point with the reunification of mother and child, there is also a chance that this could become an adoptive scenario. In either case, receiving this baby into our family has opened my eyes afresh to the beauty of God's grace, in which our Heavenly Father welcomes us into His family.
Amazingly, all of this happened in a week in which two of the Lectionary texts speak very compellingly about adoption: Galatians 4:4-7 and Isaiah 62:2. So, on Saturday, my sermon from Luke 2 got chucked and I enjoyed the gift of reflecting on God's adoptive heart.
The Galatians text reads: But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. 6And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.
The Isaiah text: The nations shall see your vindication, and all the kings your glory; and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will give.
So you can see why I tossed out my sermon! Wow!
So here are some reflections. What happens when a child is adopted? What does it mean that we "have received adoption as children" of God?
1. Adoption means a new name... a name the Lord gives, and a new name means a new identity, an unshakable identity, an identity not rooted in the shallow ground of our accomplishments or self-making, not subject to the frailty of our faith or inevitability of our failures, but rooted deeply in the steady faithfulness and irrevocable choice of God.
2. Adoption means a new family. We are not adopted metaphorically into an individualistic arrangement with God, but concretely into a family of faith where we have real, flesh-and-blood brothers and sisters, an actual support structure and network of real relationships through which God speaks to, challenges, leads, and blesses us.
3. Adoption means a new privilege. Being brought into this new family and given this name entails having the full range of God's resources as our own. The Spirit by which we are adopted is none other than the Spirit of Jesus, and everything that is His is not ours. His rights have become our rights, as we are full co-heirs with Him.
4. Adoption means new responsibility. In this family there are no freeloaders. When God adopts, God empowers and God gives us the amazing gift and dignity of being partners in the work of the Kingdom. In the scripture we have other instances of God declaring people to be His children. The Lord calls Israel "his firstborn son" (Exodus 4:22). The kings of Israel were often called Son of God (Psalm 2:7). And, of course, Jesus is declared to be God's beloved Son (see the Gospel accounts of Jesus' baptism and transfiguration). In each case, sonship comes with great responsibility, to be a light to the nations, to be the leader of God's people, and to be the savior of the world. Our adoption means nothing less... we have great responsibility as children of God.
5. Adoption means having a new story. Our lives are defined by stories, and adoption by God means we are redefined by God's story, the story of Israel, Jesus and the church. In this great story we are given a hope-filled and confident sense of who we are, and we can say with assurance in the face of any competing story, "My daddy is stronger than yours!"
6. Adoption means a new table. In my family, eating together is central to how we share life together. This is only more so in God's family, where are are invited to the family meal at which there is always enough food and drink, always space for sharing our joys and hurts, and always assurance that whatever grievances may have occurred among us, none are stronger than the ties that bring us back to this Table.
On Sunday morning, I wrote down these reflections through bleary eyes, having not slept much the night before (victim of a vicious two-infant tag-team). My fatigue reminded me that receiving a child is a costly endeavor... in many ways. This is supremely the case for our Lord, for whom adopting us cost the very life of Jesus. This adventure is also risky. Our hearts are already bound to Noah, and we may well have our hearts broken if he leaves our family. This, though, is the nature of love. God takes the greatest risk of love in making the ultimate sacrifice in order to adopt children who may never recognize Him as Father. And yet, in the face of the cost and the risk, God adopts us still, graciously choosing us and determining to love us.
Thank you, Father.
New Years Eve Amy and I picked up 2-day old Noah at a local hospital, welcoming him into our family for what is yet an undetermined period of time. Where this is only a foster placement and could end at any point with the reunification of mother and child, there is also a chance that this could become an adoptive scenario. In either case, receiving this baby into our family has opened my eyes afresh to the beauty of God's grace, in which our Heavenly Father welcomes us into His family.
Amazingly, all of this happened in a week in which two of the Lectionary texts speak very compellingly about adoption: Galatians 4:4-7 and Isaiah 62:2. So, on Saturday, my sermon from Luke 2 got chucked and I enjoyed the gift of reflecting on God's adoptive heart.
The Galatians text reads: But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. 6And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.
The Isaiah text: The nations shall see your vindication, and all the kings your glory; and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will give.
So you can see why I tossed out my sermon! Wow!
So here are some reflections. What happens when a child is adopted? What does it mean that we "have received adoption as children" of God?
1. Adoption means a new name... a name the Lord gives, and a new name means a new identity, an unshakable identity, an identity not rooted in the shallow ground of our accomplishments or self-making, not subject to the frailty of our faith or inevitability of our failures, but rooted deeply in the steady faithfulness and irrevocable choice of God.
2. Adoption means a new family. We are not adopted metaphorically into an individualistic arrangement with God, but concretely into a family of faith where we have real, flesh-and-blood brothers and sisters, an actual support structure and network of real relationships through which God speaks to, challenges, leads, and blesses us.
3. Adoption means a new privilege. Being brought into this new family and given this name entails having the full range of God's resources as our own. The Spirit by which we are adopted is none other than the Spirit of Jesus, and everything that is His is not ours. His rights have become our rights, as we are full co-heirs with Him.
4. Adoption means new responsibility. In this family there are no freeloaders. When God adopts, God empowers and God gives us the amazing gift and dignity of being partners in the work of the Kingdom. In the scripture we have other instances of God declaring people to be His children. The Lord calls Israel "his firstborn son" (Exodus 4:22). The kings of Israel were often called Son of God (Psalm 2:7). And, of course, Jesus is declared to be God's beloved Son (see the Gospel accounts of Jesus' baptism and transfiguration). In each case, sonship comes with great responsibility, to be a light to the nations, to be the leader of God's people, and to be the savior of the world. Our adoption means nothing less... we have great responsibility as children of God.
5. Adoption means having a new story. Our lives are defined by stories, and adoption by God means we are redefined by God's story, the story of Israel, Jesus and the church. In this great story we are given a hope-filled and confident sense of who we are, and we can say with assurance in the face of any competing story, "My daddy is stronger than yours!"
6. Adoption means a new table. In my family, eating together is central to how we share life together. This is only more so in God's family, where are are invited to the family meal at which there is always enough food and drink, always space for sharing our joys and hurts, and always assurance that whatever grievances may have occurred among us, none are stronger than the ties that bring us back to this Table.
On Sunday morning, I wrote down these reflections through bleary eyes, having not slept much the night before (victim of a vicious two-infant tag-team). My fatigue reminded me that receiving a child is a costly endeavor... in many ways. This is supremely the case for our Lord, for whom adopting us cost the very life of Jesus. This adventure is also risky. Our hearts are already bound to Noah, and we may well have our hearts broken if he leaves our family. This, though, is the nature of love. God takes the greatest risk of love in making the ultimate sacrifice in order to adopt children who may never recognize Him as Father. And yet, in the face of the cost and the risk, God adopts us still, graciously choosing us and determining to love us.
Thank you, Father.
December Update
Faithful Friends,
Merry Christmas and happy New Year! I pray the end of 2011 offered you opportunities to enjoy the gifts of family and friends and of remembering God’s presence, provision and comfort in the year past. As I think back over the last year I am amazed at all that has come to pass and how clearly God has been in the midst of a whirlwind of change in our lives. A year ago, Amy, the girls and I were enjoying the awesome gift of a dynamic church and incredible community of friends in Southern Pines; we were waiting for confirmation that we would indeed be sent to begin a new work in Durham; and we were anticipating the immanent expansion of our family with the birth of a new baby. In the months that followed began concrete planning for the The CityWell, we built a new home in Durham, we said goodbye to our beloved church and friends in Southern Pines, and we welcomed John Coleman May III into our lives. In the midst of those transitions we grieved (and are still grieving) the loss of our amazing sister-in-law, Katie Noel Parsons May.
Needless to say with all that going on, The CityWell began with fits and starts, but we really began finding rhythm and picking up steam (forgive the mixed metaphor) in the fall, and what an adventure this has been! Amy and I are continually amazed to see all God is doing in the birthing of this new church, and we are deeply grateful to be a part of this. In previous updates I have mentioned the centrality of mission in our life together, the hope that we will be a people who look like the Kingdom of God as traditional dividing walls (race, ethnicity, economics, etc...) come down, and our intention to develop an integrated rhythm of life in which our identity as the church pervades every element of our lives. In December I was captivated by another component of our life together that I pray will remain a part of our communal DNA: an Advent freedom of speech. Along with churches throughout the world, we spend the four Sundays of Advent remembering that the Christ who came, comes to us still, and will come again. Within this tri-fold promise we found the freedom to begin naming the brokenness of our lives, our community and our world. In every time of worship we gave generous amounts of time to the vocalizing of our gratitude for Jesus’ coming and blessings, our dire need for His continued presence, and our confident longing in the face of messy lives that He will indeed come again to make all things new. Several times I found myself amazed at the power of the things shared, the courage and freedom found to publicly name sin and brokenness, the willingness to put away pretense for the sake of a truthful rendering of our lives before God and one another. The freedom of speech that so moved us was not only in the content of things shared, but in the space created for all to share, in the opening of the air to any and every voice. This open and un-scripted element of corporate worship has been unique in my experience of church and I am excited to see where this will go.
On Christmas Eve we decided to trade in a candlelight service for a more unconventional way to remember the birth of Jesus. Once again we partnered with Open Table Ministries and at noon gathered for an absolutely decadent feast with friends from Grace Park Church and nearly 30 members of a homeless community that lives in the woods here in Durham. We met in an open space of grass on an access road next to the highway; we listened to Christmas music booming out of a PA; we ate wayyyyy too much; we made new friends; we sang carols and Christmas hymns and laughed together; we spoke of the amazing gift of God in Jesus; and strangers who otherwise would never likely meet became friends through the unifying gifts of food and song. It was simply wonderful.
Finally, on the very last day of 2011, a year that involved an unprecedented amount of change in our lives came to an unexpected and thematically appropriate climax as we welcomed a beautiful foster baby into our family. Noah Andreas was two days old when we joined us and we are already coming to love him deeply. Please pray for Noah, his mother, and for God’s will in the outcome of this placement.
Yes, it has been quite a year, and through it all, God has been God – faithful, generous, tender, funny, and always surprising. Oh, what will 2012 hold?
Grace and peace,
Cleve
Friday, December 30, 2011
The Big Day!
So... yesterday around 2:00pm a baby boy was born in Burlington - 7lbs, 11oz. As far as we know both baby and young momma are healthy. We will likely be called today to come pick up the baby at the hospital to begin the foster placement.
Thank you for all of your prayers and encouraging emails. Please continue to pray for all of us - the Mays, the baby, the mother. There is much excitement, fear and sadness in this situation, but we trust that ultimately God is doing a great thing in the gift of this child's life.
We sure appreciate you all.
Cleve & Amy
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Here We Go...
Dear Friends,
Amy and I have big news to share with you and a great need for your prayers. Many of you know that for the last four years we have been licensed foster parents hoping for the opportunity to open our home and our family to a child who needs both. Our ultimate hope is to adopt, as we believe this is a ministry to which God has called us. This sense of calling has been developing from the early days of our marriage and we have been praying for God to send the right child at the right time. Well…
A week ago we received a call from the Methodist Home for Children (our agency) asking if we were willing to be considered for a foster placement for a baby boy that is due to be born in early January. The boy’s mother is a 15-year-old girl, herself under the care of DSS. Amazingly, this is very much the kind of scenario that we have hoped for in this process… the opportunity to come alongside a girl in a tough spot and provide a tangible alternative to the easy way out she could have taken. However, there is the reality of our current situation… new community, new church, new four-month-old baby. Well, much to both of our surprise, Amy and I both felt a sense of excitement about this possibility even in the face of the chaos that is our life at present. Along with this, we have a deep conviction that when our Lord calls us He always leads and provides everything needed for the journey. Therefore…
We said, “yes.” Now, in this system “being considered” does not mean that you will be selected from the pool of potential foster parents. However, yesterday we received word that the May family has been chosen. Again, the question was asked, “Are you willing to proceed?” After prayer and a family meeting, again we said, “yes.” So…
Sometime in the next few weeks will have an addition to our family… at least for a time. We really are aware that this will be a crazy season of life – likely the most difficult we have yet encountered. We see that reality, however, within the context of a greater reality in which our Lord gave us a home and called us family in our hour of greatest need. We now have the privilege of honoring the One who so welcomed us by welcoming this child, and we are excited and grateful… and, of course, scared out of our minds! All that to say…
Please pray. Pray for the young mother who is facing such difficult circumstances. Pray for a healthy delivery of this baby boy. Pray that, even now, the Holy Spirit would incline this child’s heart to Jesus, and that the season spent in our home as a part of our family would serve to demonstrate the love of Christ to this little one. Pray for us and for our kids, that we would be prepared and equipped for what lies ahead. Pray for anything else that comes to mind. And then…
Pray some more!
We are so grateful for each of you and the role you play in our lives. We look forward to giving you updates soon.
Merry Christmas!
Cleve & Amy
Saturday, December 10, 2011
November Update
Friends,
I have so much to share with you about The CityWell’s November… crazy, wonderful month. First, on a personal note, I am so thankful for God giving me a deep sense of peace with regards to the anxiety I wrestled with for several months. Thank you for praying for me in this! I hope you will continue to do so.
November marked our official transition out of the May house for our Sunday gatherings because we simply do not have enough room for everyone who is joining us. We are very grateful to our friends at Reality Ministries who allow us to use some of their space for these times together. We meet in the game room, a large space filled with couches, game tables and a huge fireplace that serves as the focal point of our worship time. It’s a wonderful, relaxed, inviting space and we are thankful!
I wish all of you could be with us for even a single week. I am constantly amazed when we gather at how God is bringing to fruition the vision of The CityWell being a diverse community. I often find myself just looking around the room in grateful amazement as people of several ethnicities, nationalities, and varying economic situations engage one another in growing friendships, share food and laughter, sing together (sometimes in different languages), and pray for one another. We are becoming who we truly are as Jesus’ church, one new humanity in Christ. It is awesome, and it is nothing other than the work of God!
We continue to share life together in homes on a regular basis, both formally and informally, and we are moving toward what I hope will become our regular rhythm of gathering midweek in our “Wells” (our extended family-sized groups that focus on becoming family and sharing common mission), and then corporately as The CityWell on Sundays. Please pray for us as we discern the way forward in this. Specifically, I would appreciate prayers for wisdom as to when to shift from being a single Well (which we presently are) to giving birth to multiple Wells. Along with this, please pray for God to give the future leaders of these Wells the vision for this calling.
Another thrilling aspect of November was the initiation of The CityWell Formation Team. This group of people has been meeting faithfully on Monday nights in our home to pray, read scripture, dream and work together toward a common articulation of our vision and values, as well as to work through the increasingly pressing and rapidly growing list of logistical issues attending all the momentum we are experiencing. These meetings are long and we are doing hard work, but Amy and I reflected last night on what a gift it is to move forward in this adventure with such awesome people. We definitely need your prayers for wisdom, creativity and unity as we proceed in this critical work together.
Finally, I want to tell you about the central role mission plays in the formation of our identity as a church. Every month we commit as a whole community to a particular way to “give our lives away,” as I like to say. In November we collected winter supplies (clothing, coats, hand warmers, blankets, etc…) for a community of homeless people who live in the woods here in Durham. We partnered with Open Table Ministries in this endeavor, and look forward to another partnership effort with this ministry in December. I believe mission, the sending of God’s people into the world for the sake of the world (and for the sake of God’s people!) to be at the heart of God and therefore at the heart of what it means for us to be a church. To that end, please pray that mission will become an even more central element of our life together.
I am so grateful for the privilege of this assignment in life, and I am grateful for your partnership with us. I hope you will consider supporting us financially as you look at your year-end giving. If you would like to make a contribution you can send checks to The CityWell 1426 N. Roxboro St. Durham, NC 27701. All gifts are, of course, tax deductible. If you would like to set up an automated schedule for giving, please let me know and we will make that happen.
Thank you friends, and may December be for you a month of remembering and celebrating that the Christ who came, comes to us still; and Christ will come again!
Cleve
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Woefully Negligent
So... I confess. After all, it's true.
I am a woefully negligent blogger.
I have lots of excuses. I even believe some of them. However, the fact remains that I have not posted in nearly four months... IN SPITE of the fact that there is SOOOO much to say.
In confessing, I hope you'll forgive me and continue to dream and pray with us as we continue in this beautiful experiment.
You'll see that I have posted monthly updates from the last four months that will help to bring you up to speed on life in The CityWell. And I promise to be far less a slacker from this point forward.
... until the next time I forget how to type (my favorite excuse!).
I am a woefully negligent blogger.
I have lots of excuses. I even believe some of them. However, the fact remains that I have not posted in nearly four months... IN SPITE of the fact that there is SOOOO much to say.
In confessing, I hope you'll forgive me and continue to dream and pray with us as we continue in this beautiful experiment.
You'll see that I have posted monthly updates from the last four months that will help to bring you up to speed on life in The CityWell. And I promise to be far less a slacker from this point forward.
... until the next time I forget how to type (my favorite excuse!).
October 2011 Update
Dear Friends,
As I write this update, I am so grateful to have you as partners in prayer, for I am more aware than ever of our absolute dependence upon God for all things. Of late a few scriptures have taken up residence in my heart, and this month I’d like to share them with you with the hope that you might “pray these scriptures” on behalf of me, my family and The CityWell.
Psalm 127:1-2 - Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.
The first part of this verse has been on my mind for over a year now, as I believe it absolutely true that the Lord must be the one who builds The CityWell. God is the Lord of the harvest who will raise up the laborers for this harvest field (Luke 10:2); and like Jesus told Peter: On this rock I will build my church… (Matthew 16:18). However, it is the second part of this verse that speaks most powerfully to me at present, for I find myself frequently eating the bread of anxious toil. I am so tempted to believe that “success” is up to me and that if I only work a little harder or for a few more hours… Last night I sat on my deck alone and confessed my anxiousness to God. I confessed because the root of anxiety is a lack of trust in God to be who God is and to do what God does. I am fearful because I fail to believe that God really will build this house. I confessed (and confess) freely and with hope because our Lord has assured us that His response to the sin of my fear is only grace and the reiterated promise of rest for His beloved.
And that is who we are. Beloved.
John 15:4-5 - Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
I suppose you can see a bit of continuity in the messages God is speaking to me through the gift of His scriptures. These verses (and really the whole passage they are taken from) pierce my heart because I am so tempted in my anxiety to demote the priority of abiding in Christ and elevate the things that seem urgent in my days. In Jesus’ words I hear a stark statement of reality (apart from Him I truly can do nothing) and a gentle invitation (abide in me; be nourished by me; find strength and hope in me). The pattern of life God has designed for us is one of rest followed by work, abiding followed by fruitfulness. In the last month I have been very convicted of my bent toward working until I absolutely need rest, rather than working from a place of rest. God is calling me to work from my rest rather than resting from my work.
Regarding The CityWell, October was a month of joy and rigor. Our weekly gatherings continue to be an occasion for thanksgiving as we are growing deeper in relationship with one another, enjoying worship together, and press forward toward a communal understanding of who we are to be as God’s church in this particular place and time. In addition to these Sunday gatherings we also have two smaller groups meeting one evening per week. These groups are marked by rigorous conversation about our calling and beautiful times of prayer for one another. In all of this I have the gift of laboring with an incredible group of people as we engage together in the hard work of becoming a community. I would invite your prayers for all of us involved that God will continue to grant the gift of discernment as to all of our callings in this ministry, and the communal gift of the Spirit of Jesus to bind us together in love, unity and common mission.
Thank you for your partnership in this ministry. I pray you will each know the fullness of God’s blessing and find the deepest joy in knowing that you are the beloved of God!
Grace and peace,
Cleve
September 2011 Update
Friends,
I am amazed that three months have gone by in the life of The CityWell. There are some great stories to tell, some wonderful answered prayers, and some surprising realizations. I am grateful for the opportunity to share these things with you, and more so that you care to hear and to pray for us. Thank you!
We have a consistent group of people for whom The CityWell is becoming a church family, and this is so exciting to see – particularly knowing that we are just beginning to experience the power and beauty of being the community God is calling us to become. We have continued to gather consistently, but in a variety of places and forms, not settling into a permanent routine. Sometimes we pile into our home; sometimes we meet at a local park; other times we gather in smaller teams in people’s living rooms; and other times we gather somewhere in the community to serve together in some way. Occasionally our gatherings slightly resemble church as most of us know it. We enjoy singing, praying for each other, receiving God’s gift of Communion, and meditating on the scriptures or stories of how God is showing up in and redeeming our lives. Often we share food with one another or meet simply to enjoy life with one another. While this is a bit chaotic, it is intentional, as we are seeking to develop a 3-dimensional life together, with upward (connecting with God), inward (connecting with one another), and outward (connecting with our city) dynamics that together comprise the fulsome life into which God invites us.
Perhaps my favorite aspect of gathering in smaller numbers and in intimate settings (like a living room) is that everyone can truly participate. I’ve been struck anew by the tone of Paul’s letters to the early churches… he’s writing to networks of oikos gatherings (oikos is Greek for household). So, for instance, in 1 Corinthians 14:26 we find: What then, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up. Each one! I am learning in a new way to take seriously that God really does impart gifts of the Spirit to EVERY believer for the sake of the whole Body, and we are learning how to structure our life together in ways that we can receive the gifts of each one. Pretty cool stuff!
Please pray for all of us, that we will have the patience and wisdom to discern God’s leading in this little church experiment. Particularly pressing in my mind is the tension between wanting to grow, and wanting to grow in the healthiest way. For instance, I believe we are called to maintain the oikos as the primary expression of our church gatherings, so as not to lose the gifts of intimacy and full participation, and to create environments where we can best grow as disciples. Therefore, the way forward for us will likely be the formation of a network of oikos gatherings, but how to get there… well, like I said, please pray for us. On a related note, I believe that God has called The CityWell into being for the sake of making disciples of those who are not yet followers of Jesus. Over and again in Scripture we see God’s heart to seek and save the lost, God’s great and generous desire for the world that every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord. Please pray that our hearts would come to beat with God’s on this, and that we might know the joy of seeing people’s eyes open to the incredible love of God for them in Jesus.
Thank you again for your partnership in prayer, and many of you for your continued financial support. I am deeply grateful to be in this with you and I hope for the opportunity to share more soon.
Grace and peace,
Cleve
August 2011 Update
Friends,
August was blur, and there are so many things to share with you. First, the home front: Our son, John Coleman May III, was born on the 10th, a whopping 8lbs 13 oz with double dimples and reddish hair! Enjoy the attached picture. We are delighted... and tired! Thank you for your prayers for him and Amy. Amy is recovering well and doing a remarkable job balancing 3 kids, making a new house our home, and hosting regular and increasingly large CityWell gatherings; she is superwoman. Our girls have really taken to having a baby brother. McKenna is working diligently toward her junior momma-bear merit badge and Ellison is enjoying playing with little man when he's happy and ignoring him when he's not. Many of you have heard that John has an enlarged right kidney. After some rather uncomfortable tests, we still do not know why, but we are encouraged as some of the more severe possibilities have been eliminated, and John seems to be doing just fine. We would appreciate your prayers for a quick and healthy resolution to this. Amy and I would appreciate your prayers that we will communicate well and grow in our sensitivity toward one another as we navigate so many new variables in our lives.
Things with The CityWell are certainly on the move. The circle of friends who are involved is growing daily. We continue to meet regularly in a variety of places and for a variety of purposes. In August we had seven official gatherings. Some of these were bible study and prayer focused, some vision casting focused, some worship services, and some social/relationship-building times. The last two Sundays we have gathered in our home. On the 21st we enjoyed a time of worship together. We were delighted to see our living area crammed with 21 adults and five children. On the 28th we gathered at the May house again, but this time for a potluck feast and a time of prayer. Along with the abundance of delicious food, we were amazed to see nearly 40 people in our home!
Momentum is certainly building, which presents great opportunity and a number of significant challenges. Namely, we are running out room to grow if we are to continue meeting in homes, which I believe to be important at this point. The vision God has given us for The CityWell is to be a network of missional communities that can reach broadly and deeply into our city. Missional communities are necessarily smaller groupings (extended family size, 20-40 people) that are committed to doing life together in intentional ways and in our natural environments (i.e. homes, neighborhoods, work places, etc...), such that we might encourage one another in the habits of discipleship and in missional engagement with our communities. The theory is simple: we grow most as Jesus' followers through close friendships that aim at discipleship, and in taking God up on His calling for each of us to partner in the work of the Kingdom. All of that to say, please pray for us as we negotiate how to harness the momentum we are experiencing and direct it toward the vision, rather than letting that momentum carry us away from the vision.
Thank you again for joining us in this ministry through your prayers. What a gift! If you are interested in supporting us financially you can send contributions to: The CityWell 1426 N. Roxboro St. Durham, NC 27701. All gifts are tax deductible. If you would like to set up an automated schedule for giving, please let me know and we will make that happen.
I look forward to sharing more of the unfolding story with you soon.
Grace and peace,
Cleve
Friday, August 12, 2011
Answered Prayers
Just over one month into this adventure and I think we need to take a moment to look back and take note of all the ways God is answering prayers.
Grace and peace.
- We have prayed for The Big Scary Dream of what this church can be - a vision that only God can bring to pass and that no one will ever mistakenly attribute to our ability. Status: prayer answered! God has given us a vision to be a church as diverse as our city that builds our life around rhythms of discipleship and mission more than around buildings and services. Truly, if God doesn't build this house, then we labor in vain.
- Literally, as I wrote that last sentence, I was reminded of a second prayer when my alarm went off on my phone... 10:02 am every morning reminding me to pray as Jesus instructs us in Luke 10:2 - The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. Therefore cry out to the Lord of the harvest that He might raise up laborers for His harvest field. God is answering this prayer constantly, bringing people into our path, often in unexpected ways. Just today I had a conversation with a wonderful nurse in our hospital room (for those that don't know, John Coleman may III was born on Wednesday... AWESOME!) that might lead to another partner. Please keep praying for more laborers.
- We have been praying that God would bring together people of different races and backgrounds to join us in this adventure. God is also answering this prayer in beautiful ways, as our gatherings include Latinos, Asians, blacks and whites. We definitely need continued prayer for this.
- We almost lost two of our core team to a school requirement and after praying that they would be able to remain with us, God not only made that possible but also provided funding for one of them, Alma Ruiz, to become our first CityWell staff person!
- For God to guide us in how to order our lives together such that we learn how to live into rhythms of discipleship and mission that make us joyful and powerful Kingdom people.
- For God to form in us habitual missionary postures, that we might come to see ourselves as partners with God in every aspect of our lives.
- That we might have favor and influence with friends and neighbors who are not yet followers of Jesus, and that we might know the joy of seeing them come to celebrate the salvation He won for them!
Grace and peace.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Surprise
Last week I went to the Fullsteam Brewery for their open mic night... great place, great time, great beer, definitely going back soon! While there I met this really cool gal who is a local singer/songwriter. We were having a great conversation until she asked me what I do (never a fun question for a pastor at a bar). When I told her I am starting a new church her demeanor visibly changed from open to guarded. Much to her credit she continued the conversation, asking, "So, I guess your looking for a building then?" I responded, "No, we're really more interested in people than we are in buildings." Immediately her demeanor changed again (back to open) and she said, "Wow. I could be into a church like that." It was a great moment when surprise conquered assumptions and an imagination was opened, if only a little, to new possibilities.
A little surprise can go a long way.
I am constantly thinking about how to describe The CityWell to people, about how to express our emerging identity in ways that are surprising and intriguing. We need surprise and intrigue because people inside and outside the church have deeply ingrained ideas of what the church is... ideas that often have little or nothing to do with who we hope to become, ideas that are loaded with assumptions and baggage that are the very reason so many people want nothing to do with the church. I hope that surprise and intrigue might help break through those preconceptions so that we have the opportunity to invite people who think they are not interested to join us in the journey of following Jesus.
So here are a few surprising statements about The CityWell:
1) We want The CityWell to be a church that no one goes to. So often in our culture church is tragically reduced to a place people go. We will not settle for such a flaccid understanding of ourselves. The CityWell is not and will not be a place to go, we are a people trying to live together in the ways of Jesus.
2) We want The CityWell to be a church that desegregates Jesus. We believe that the church is one of Jesus' most tangible ways of being present in the world. This is why the Bible calls us "the body of Christ." We also believe that the rampant segregation of the church (less than 8% of churches in America are multi-ethnic) presents an unclear picture of Jesus to the world, as Jesus is the One in whom every dividing wall and barrier of hostility is torn down. We must not and will not settle to be another homogeneous congregation, so we will strive to embrace and reflect the diversity of Durham.
3) We want The CityWell to be a church that lives to give our lives away. Jesus said, "If anyone would follow me, let them take up their cross..." He also said, "whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." Jesus calls us to come and die... to die to ourselves, to die to the small world of self-centeredness, in order that we might live Him and for the sake of others. To be His people, we must learn to give our lives away and so become a people marked by generosity, goodness, beauty and joy.
What do you think? Would you be surprised and intrigued by a church that people don't go to, that desegregates Jesus and that lives to give our lives away? I am.
A little surprise can go a long way.
I am constantly thinking about how to describe The CityWell to people, about how to express our emerging identity in ways that are surprising and intriguing. We need surprise and intrigue because people inside and outside the church have deeply ingrained ideas of what the church is... ideas that often have little or nothing to do with who we hope to become, ideas that are loaded with assumptions and baggage that are the very reason so many people want nothing to do with the church. I hope that surprise and intrigue might help break through those preconceptions so that we have the opportunity to invite people who think they are not interested to join us in the journey of following Jesus.
So here are a few surprising statements about The CityWell:
1) We want The CityWell to be a church that no one goes to. So often in our culture church is tragically reduced to a place people go. We will not settle for such a flaccid understanding of ourselves. The CityWell is not and will not be a place to go, we are a people trying to live together in the ways of Jesus.
2) We want The CityWell to be a church that desegregates Jesus. We believe that the church is one of Jesus' most tangible ways of being present in the world. This is why the Bible calls us "the body of Christ." We also believe that the rampant segregation of the church (less than 8% of churches in America are multi-ethnic) presents an unclear picture of Jesus to the world, as Jesus is the One in whom every dividing wall and barrier of hostility is torn down. We must not and will not settle to be another homogeneous congregation, so we will strive to embrace and reflect the diversity of Durham.
3) We want The CityWell to be a church that lives to give our lives away. Jesus said, "If anyone would follow me, let them take up their cross..." He also said, "whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." Jesus calls us to come and die... to die to ourselves, to die to the small world of self-centeredness, in order that we might live Him and for the sake of others. To be His people, we must learn to give our lives away and so become a people marked by generosity, goodness, beauty and joy.
What do you think? Would you be surprised and intrigued by a church that people don't go to, that desegregates Jesus and that lives to give our lives away? I am.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Shifting the Center of Gravity: Part 2
So if the center of gravity must shift in our self-understanding and practice as the church, what forms of being the church might be more helpful toward the goals of bearing witness to the Kingdom and making disciples of Jesus? Well, lots of people are wrestling with this question and several have made very promising suggestions.
I am excited about one such idea, the formation of missional communities. What if the center of the church's gravity was in small communities of people (10-30 people) who are committed to living rhythms of discipleship in the context of their daily lives with their neighbors, friends and children. If we build The CityWell around these small communities, I'm inclined to call them something like wells, sources of life for those of us who long for the whole of our lives to center around the person and ways of Jesus.
The rhythms these wells live by might include meeting together weekly as a whole group, meeting weekly with one or two other people in the well for accountability and encouragement, and sharing in a common mission within our city, seeking to make a concerted, focused and sustained effort to bring the reality and beauty of God's kingdom to concrete expression in Durham.
The weekly well gathering could be in homes and allow time for sharing life and a meal, for prayer and listening to God's Word, for friendship and inspiration toward the community's common goals of discipleship and mission. I am hopeful that incorporating children as full participants in the practices of the wells would be natural and transformative for children and adults alike. These gatherings would also offer a wonderful opportunity for inviting our friends who are not yet followers of Jesus to come along, to observe and participate in the ways of the Kingdom and the practices of discipleship, to explore and discover the ways of Jesus at their own pace and to come to believe in the context of first belonging with a people who love them and learn with and from them. This idea thrills me, as I would never flinch to invite my friends of different faiths to my home (or to a friends home) for dinner, prayer, and a conversation of what it means to live as a follower of Jesus. This strikes me as much more helpful than inviting people to "church" when there are usually deep-seeded reasons why they have other agendas on Sunday morning.
The smaller, intimate time between 2 or 3 people of the well could fit easily within people's schedules, happening over coffee, lunch, an evening drink or any mutually convenient time. This discipline would aim at deep accountability to living and growing in the ways of Jesus, time for mutual prayer and the gifts of encouragement and support. This kind of rhythm and rigorous practice can keep us from complacency in our life with Christ and open us up to greater possibility and joy as His disciples.
Finally, each well could have the freedom within the vision of The CityWell to seek the shalom of Durham, to discern the ways in which God has equipped and is calling them to pour their lives into our city. Each well could choose the ways they would invest their lives together for the sake of Durham, serving in areas of shared passion and hope. Another crazy idea (spurred by an experiment attempted by Rick Rusaw of Lifebridge Community Church) would be to give a significant percentage of every well's giving to The CityWell back to the well for discretionary use. So if the well I am a part of wants to pump money into a local public school to improve the educational opportunities of our city's lower income students, or give significantly toward the construction of a Habitat home, we would have the resources to do so without negotiating the red-tape of a church board. I suspect that we will grow to be more generous people when we are excited about seeing our giving make tangible differences in our city in places and ways our hearts have been given to.
Taken together, these practices of communal gatherings, shared lives, listening to scripture, prayer, accountability, and common mission would have awesome impact in forming us as followers of Jesus and bearing tangible witness to the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. Perhaps such a center of gravity might firmly ground us in a more fruitful way of being the church. What do you think?
I am excited about one such idea, the formation of missional communities. What if the center of the church's gravity was in small communities of people (10-30 people) who are committed to living rhythms of discipleship in the context of their daily lives with their neighbors, friends and children. If we build The CityWell around these small communities, I'm inclined to call them something like wells, sources of life for those of us who long for the whole of our lives to center around the person and ways of Jesus.
The rhythms these wells live by might include meeting together weekly as a whole group, meeting weekly with one or two other people in the well for accountability and encouragement, and sharing in a common mission within our city, seeking to make a concerted, focused and sustained effort to bring the reality and beauty of God's kingdom to concrete expression in Durham.
The weekly well gathering could be in homes and allow time for sharing life and a meal, for prayer and listening to God's Word, for friendship and inspiration toward the community's common goals of discipleship and mission. I am hopeful that incorporating children as full participants in the practices of the wells would be natural and transformative for children and adults alike. These gatherings would also offer a wonderful opportunity for inviting our friends who are not yet followers of Jesus to come along, to observe and participate in the ways of the Kingdom and the practices of discipleship, to explore and discover the ways of Jesus at their own pace and to come to believe in the context of first belonging with a people who love them and learn with and from them. This idea thrills me, as I would never flinch to invite my friends of different faiths to my home (or to a friends home) for dinner, prayer, and a conversation of what it means to live as a follower of Jesus. This strikes me as much more helpful than inviting people to "church" when there are usually deep-seeded reasons why they have other agendas on Sunday morning.
The smaller, intimate time between 2 or 3 people of the well could fit easily within people's schedules, happening over coffee, lunch, an evening drink or any mutually convenient time. This discipline would aim at deep accountability to living and growing in the ways of Jesus, time for mutual prayer and the gifts of encouragement and support. This kind of rhythm and rigorous practice can keep us from complacency in our life with Christ and open us up to greater possibility and joy as His disciples.
Finally, each well could have the freedom within the vision of The CityWell to seek the shalom of Durham, to discern the ways in which God has equipped and is calling them to pour their lives into our city. Each well could choose the ways they would invest their lives together for the sake of Durham, serving in areas of shared passion and hope. Another crazy idea (spurred by an experiment attempted by Rick Rusaw of Lifebridge Community Church) would be to give a significant percentage of every well's giving to The CityWell back to the well for discretionary use. So if the well I am a part of wants to pump money into a local public school to improve the educational opportunities of our city's lower income students, or give significantly toward the construction of a Habitat home, we would have the resources to do so without negotiating the red-tape of a church board. I suspect that we will grow to be more generous people when we are excited about seeing our giving make tangible differences in our city in places and ways our hearts have been given to.
Taken together, these practices of communal gatherings, shared lives, listening to scripture, prayer, accountability, and common mission would have awesome impact in forming us as followers of Jesus and bearing tangible witness to the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. Perhaps such a center of gravity might firmly ground us in a more fruitful way of being the church. What do you think?
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Shifting the Center of Gravity: Part 1
Most any discussion of church these days quickly reveals that there is a definite center of gravity that determines the form and fruit of Christ's body in our culture. Think about the questions we ask about the church:
Where does your church meet?
What style of worship do you have?
How big is your church (meaning how many people attend on Sunday)?
What programs does your church have?
All of these questions assume that the substance of the church can be weighed according to a particular center of gravity... the Sunday morning gathering. In fact this assumption is so pervasive that the vast majority of people in our culture, including Christians, speak of the church primarily as a place to go (or not, more commonly), or an event to attend.
More than just our language, within the church world our scorecards betrays our common understanding of the church. What is a successful church? Well, it may be said that we measure our success by the ABC's: attendance, buildings and cash. How many people come to our expensive buildings to put cash in the plate so we can afford our buildings?
This is a bit crude and generalized, of course, but the attractional nature of our scorecards is undeniable. We also measure participation in our programs, our men's and women's groups, our youth groups and kids' programs, our bible studies and Sunday school classes. While many of these programs likely occur throughout the week, they produce the same effect as the Sunday morning center of gravity... namely, that church is understood as something I leave my school, work, neighborhood (and all of the relationships naturally associated with these fields of life) in order to go to the church to do the God thing.
There are several problems with all of this. First, when we think and speak of the church as a place to go or as an event to attend we lose the deep sense that the church is a people on mission together to bear witness to Good News that in Jesus the Kingdom of God has come near, and to make disciples who, because of his life, death and resurrection live according to the reality and in the ways of that Kingdom.
Second, by creating a culture of "come" (come to worship, come to Bible study, come to youth, come to the committee meeting) we actually work against our ability to heed Jesus' commission for us to GO. Rather than being a people on mission, we extract ourselves from the harvest field; we leave the everyday places of life in which God has placed us as missionaries; we go to church and fail to be the church.
Third, in the culture of "come" we end up dumping an enormous amount of time, energy and resources into a one hour event that is demonstrably ineffective toward our primary goal of making disciples. It has been said that attending church for most people has the formative impact of going to the gym, drinking coffee and eating donuts while watching your trainer work out. We must face the reality that a tragic number of the folks who attend our churches faithfully are not deeply formed in the ways of Jesus. Simply put, participation does not equate to formation.
So what are we to do? Should we do away with the Sunday morning worship gatherings?
By no means.
Rather, I have become convinced that we simply must shift our center of gravity. Where corporate worship is a vitally important element of the church's life, we must not expect it to be the primary bearer of the weight of disciple formation.
If we are to make such a shift, what would be a more fruitful center of gravity? Might there be ways to be the church in the daily rhythms of our lives, in the natural fields of life to which God has appointed us to live and bear witness? Might it be that a new center of gravity would more deeply form us in the ways of Jesus and free us to be a people on mission together whose faith, homes, work, schools, neighborhoods and relationships become an integrated whole?
The writing is on the wall. Our current forms of church are not producing deeply formed disciples of Jesus who are capable or motivated to go and make disciples themselves. And so the church in the west is dying. Something foundational must change or we will certainly get where we are heading. We must shift the center of gravity for what it means to be the church. The CityWell will be an experiment in just such a gravitational shift, and I am hopeful that the Lord will show us fruitful ways forward, that we might be a people who show forth with our lives the life-giving Good News that Jesus is Lord.
Perhaps you will join us for the shift.
Where does your church meet?
What style of worship do you have?
How big is your church (meaning how many people attend on Sunday)?
What programs does your church have?
All of these questions assume that the substance of the church can be weighed according to a particular center of gravity... the Sunday morning gathering. In fact this assumption is so pervasive that the vast majority of people in our culture, including Christians, speak of the church primarily as a place to go (or not, more commonly), or an event to attend.
More than just our language, within the church world our scorecards betrays our common understanding of the church. What is a successful church? Well, it may be said that we measure our success by the ABC's: attendance, buildings and cash. How many people come to our expensive buildings to put cash in the plate so we can afford our buildings?
This is a bit crude and generalized, of course, but the attractional nature of our scorecards is undeniable. We also measure participation in our programs, our men's and women's groups, our youth groups and kids' programs, our bible studies and Sunday school classes. While many of these programs likely occur throughout the week, they produce the same effect as the Sunday morning center of gravity... namely, that church is understood as something I leave my school, work, neighborhood (and all of the relationships naturally associated with these fields of life) in order to go to the church to do the God thing.
There are several problems with all of this. First, when we think and speak of the church as a place to go or as an event to attend we lose the deep sense that the church is a people on mission together to bear witness to Good News that in Jesus the Kingdom of God has come near, and to make disciples who, because of his life, death and resurrection live according to the reality and in the ways of that Kingdom.
Second, by creating a culture of "come" (come to worship, come to Bible study, come to youth, come to the committee meeting) we actually work against our ability to heed Jesus' commission for us to GO. Rather than being a people on mission, we extract ourselves from the harvest field; we leave the everyday places of life in which God has placed us as missionaries; we go to church and fail to be the church.
Third, in the culture of "come" we end up dumping an enormous amount of time, energy and resources into a one hour event that is demonstrably ineffective toward our primary goal of making disciples. It has been said that attending church for most people has the formative impact of going to the gym, drinking coffee and eating donuts while watching your trainer work out. We must face the reality that a tragic number of the folks who attend our churches faithfully are not deeply formed in the ways of Jesus. Simply put, participation does not equate to formation.
So what are we to do? Should we do away with the Sunday morning worship gatherings?
By no means.
Rather, I have become convinced that we simply must shift our center of gravity. Where corporate worship is a vitally important element of the church's life, we must not expect it to be the primary bearer of the weight of disciple formation.
If we are to make such a shift, what would be a more fruitful center of gravity? Might there be ways to be the church in the daily rhythms of our lives, in the natural fields of life to which God has appointed us to live and bear witness? Might it be that a new center of gravity would more deeply form us in the ways of Jesus and free us to be a people on mission together whose faith, homes, work, schools, neighborhoods and relationships become an integrated whole?
The writing is on the wall. Our current forms of church are not producing deeply formed disciples of Jesus who are capable or motivated to go and make disciples themselves. And so the church in the west is dying. Something foundational must change or we will certainly get where we are heading. We must shift the center of gravity for what it means to be the church. The CityWell will be an experiment in just such a gravitational shift, and I am hopeful that the Lord will show us fruitful ways forward, that we might be a people who show forth with our lives the life-giving Good News that Jesus is Lord.
Perhaps you will join us for the shift.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Tagging On...
Some very helpful recent feedback on the potential reception of the tag, "Follow Jesus. Live Well. Bless the City." has led me back to the drawing board. New thought... We should not expect a person to glean from a sticker, t-shirt, business card or other single-glance media a solid understanding of our mission. Actually, in trying to encapsulate our mission in pithy phrases we likely open ourselves up to misunderstanding and/or allow people to think they know what we're driving at without actually having a conversation to really understand. So, what if the goal of the logo and tag is simply to invite inquiry that leads to dialog and a fruitful opportunity to express the Good News that Jesus makes it possible and invites us to follow Him, live well, and bless the city. So how about something like this:
The CityWell
For All Who Thirst
Thank you to the CityWell core team for these ideas. I'd love to know your ideas as well.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Playing Tag
The gestation period for the The CityWell is quickly coming to an end, and suddenly I am having to move from the dreaming/theorizing phase of this process to some concrete things like incorporating (serious pain in the rumpus), putting together a website and having a logo designed for all print material. Hopefully next week, I'll have some logo ideas I can post for your feedback, but for now I need to finalize the tag line that will be a part of the logo. This needs to be a simple, sticky, and compelling statement. Here is the version I'm leaning toward at this point:
The CityWell
Follow Jesus. Live Well. Bless the City.
I think these three phrases encapsulate the vision for this church and flow sequentially, with following Jesus being the ground for the other two. What do you think?
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