Here To Where

How To Lose Your Vision

The steps to losing your Vision are really quite simple once you understand exactly what it is that you’re trying to lose.

By Vision, I am referring to that lens through which you look into the future and make some attempt to aim at or achieve something. It is also that encompassing ideal… that faint wisp of a concept upon which you have based your life’s work, be it ministry or otherwise. Vision is like cancer to the uninitiated and candy to the idealist.

Like I said, the steps to losing your Vision are simple. All you have to do is dry up, disengage, and detach. It really is that easy! And I chose three ‘D’ words to help you remember.

[Exit Sarcasm]

Dry Up

Ministries are like toothpaste tubes – they work great when there’s a steady flow of ideas and activity, but when the tube runs out the spout gets crusty and corroded. It takes more effort to squeeze out what’s left and you end up with a smaller result for the strain. God’s work is about being creative and innovative. If it weren’t, there wouldn’t be a dynamic range of ministries. We’d all be doing the same things, reaching the same people, working in the same places. Thankfully ministry is dynamic. It’s full of life, color, and variety. God’s work is always like that. (I cite the Earth as Exhibit A and mankind as Exhibit B.) Where one ministry ends, another begins. If one organization ministers to women, another works on the men. One might focus on providing medicine to a deprived group of people, while another helps to deprive a different group of the drugs they’ve been addicted to. I’d venture a guess that there aren’t many areas of the world – geographically and socially – that we haven’t reached in some capacity. So at least we have saturation on our side. But we must continue to innovate and find new ways of reaching the lost or we’ll dry up, get crusty, and eventually get tossed.

Disengage

I love the word ‘engage.’ The root word ‘gage’ in it’s verb form means to “offer a thing or one’s life as a guarantee of good faith.” In it’s noun form it refers to the thing that one would offer in that same pledge – an object of value. It was also used to refer to the glove thrown to the ground to symbolize a challenge to fight. Oh the implications! I just love this! What a literary gold mine! Just think of it… to be engaged in work, especially in ministry, means that you are offering your life, or something of value, as a guarantee of good faith that you are up for the task. It means that you are willing to sacrifice and do what must be done to accomplish your work. And it proclaims that you’re ready for a fight, that the gloves are off, and that you’re not going down easy. Are you hearing this? This is hard core stuff. And the benefits far outweigh the value of what you put in because they’re eternal.

I hate the word ‘disengage’. It’s the same as the word ‘engage’ but with a resounding ‘DIS’ in front of it. It means you wussed out. You sacrificed your ground, your fight, and probably your glove. Losing is different… it implies that you actually fought. But disengagement means you turned around and ran like a yellowbelly. This may be the worst thing you can do in ministry. Because when you’re disengaged, you can only be running away from God, into the hands of the Enemy.

Detach

You know that look in a person’s eyes when they’re daydreaming. And then you wave your hands in front of their face and say “Hellooo? Where’d you go?” That’s a form a detachment. It’s a disconnect between the life you’re actually living and the one you’re dreaming about. This same thing happens to ministry workers – we become detached. We can go about our daily tasks like we’re in a trance, but we’re thinking about the greener grass in a different ministry, or a different line of work. We remove ourselves from the reality of our situation and think of the things that might make us happy. What happens then is that seeds of discontent and resentment are sown, and they grow up around us like thickets and thorns, suffocating the rays of light bit by bit.

Detachment can be addictive. It can become our defense mechanism when things get tough at work. We just take a hit of detachment to soften the edge a bit. But each time we need more and more. Soon we’re just shells sitting at a computer, or standing behind a podium, regurgitating the words we’d formerly spoken with passion and zeal. When the passion leaves us, and we don’t pursue it, we begin to empty. And then, like a used up fuel tank on a space shuttle, we detach, and float off into the endless void.

If you think this all seems rather melodramatic, sadly you’re wrong. It’s actually rather understated. I’ve merely given you three simple steps to lose the Vision of your ministry. I haven’t even touched on the disastrous effects this can have. Maintaining and communicating Vision within your organization is imperative because it sets the goal line. The better you cast the Vision and the more effort you put into helping people understand it, the less likely it is that you’ll face these issues in your work.

Vision is supposed to be unattainable in a Christian ministry, so set your goals high and lofty – then jump like a lollipop-obsessed three-year-old at the bank counter to achieve them.

Chasing the Unattainable Vision

The trouble with Vision is that you have to have it to know where you’re going. But it also needs to be far enough away that you’ll never reach it so that you’ll always have a reason to keep going. Happily, the Christian life comes with this edition of Vision built-in, and it’s free of charge. For the rest of the world Vision comes at the price of actually attaining it and then having nothing to do afterwards. There is a great nothingness beyond Vision that can only be avoided by setting high and lofty unattainable goals. The Lost are doomed to achieving their goals and then finding them empty and meaningless in the end. That is a high price to pay. Especially when the alternative is so readily available.

God has prefabricated our Christian lives with this great feature of The Unattainable Vision. It’s an extension of the Vision that He gives us individually that allows us to work with a greater purpose. It’s the rainbow that stays just off in the distance looking beautiful and mysterious . We chase it, knowing all the while that we’ll never catch it. But maybe along the journey we see something new. Maybe the chase reveals something about ourselves that we had not yet uncovered. Or maybe we just needed to chase it to remember how we love to pursue Him. Imagine the despair you would feel if you actually reached the rainbow and found out what you always knew… it was just a bunch of water molecules basking in the sun and reflecting it’s light. It’s the chase we really want. Shakespeare quickly sums it up when speaking about the pursuer of a cruel lust:

Past reason hunted and, no sooner had,
Past reason hated.

This doesn’t mean that we hate everything once we’ve attained it. That would be extreme. But, what it does mean is that it’s the thrill of the chase that we crave. And often, when we’ve reached something, we discard it in search for a new chase. And thus, with God, and by His design, we cannot be completely satisfied when it is He and His Vision we are pursuing. This should come as a comfort to know that we will always be able to chase after Him, and that only in the boundlessness of Eternity will we know what it’s like to have caught Him.

Punching Out For God

I work in ministry. That’s the shorthand for “my work on this earth will never be finished so long as I’m called to work here.” If you work in ministry then you know exactly what I’m talking about. If you’re a Christian, then technically you should feel like this as well. Our work here is never done, no matter where you are, what you do, or who you boss around.

There’s something I’d like to point out about the statement “I work in ministry.” Word choice is very important here. A simple change of prepositions renders a completely different interpretation of just what one does each day. For instance, if you replaced the word “in” with “at” (and stuck in an “a” for good looks), your statement would read “I work at a ministry.” Now, tell me that doesn’t ring a little dissonant in your heart. You might as well say “My job is at a place where they do things that they think God wants them to do.” It reeks of discontentment, detachment, and what’s another ‘D’ word… inDifference. But to say “I work in ministry” implicates that you have invested and immersed yourself in the work that needs to be done. It communicates an attitude of dedication, commitment, and responsibility to the tasks laid before you. And if you find yourself in the former state of mind – using “at” instead of “in” – then try switching it up. Remind yourself of the mission and your part in it. Remember that you’re in a battle, and that you can be a hero, just by altering your prepositional tendencies.

Working in ministry is sort of like being on call. Whenever you finally manage to wrap up the day’s pressing responsibilities you end up going home with a vague sense that your work isn’t done yet – that it’s still, somehow, unfinished. And to the cynic, the realist, the workaholic, and the Christian… it is. But I have a nagging feeling that we take this too far. Maybe we take ministry too seriously in general. If you go home at night feeling guilty about all that you’ve left unfinished, and stressed out about all that you have before you, then something is wrong. Of all the work environments, the atmosphere of a ministry should be the most gracious and understanding of all because, in reality, those involved have agreed to take on a level of responsibility that surpasses earthly measurement. It goes beyond task lists, time tracking applications, and project management software. It stretches into the realm of the impossible because we all know our work will never be “complete.” For every person reached, there are millions more that have yet to hear the message we work so hard to impart.

This is an eternal perspective. Whether your in ministry, at ministry, or a Christian working a 9 to 5, if you think that if you work enough hours and get enough done that you’re almost finished, you need wake up. Check out Ecclesiastes 3 and you’ll see what I’m talking about. God has already instituted His blanket contingency plan for our uselessness and the vanity of our work. What is and what will be, has already been, and God has already done what needs to be done. Nothing we can do will add or subtract from that.

So, what’s the point? You’ll find that in Ecclesiastes 3:12…

I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live; also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil – this is God’s gift to man.

So do yourself a favor. Work hard, go above and beyond, and work with a sense of urgency. I guarantee that you’ll get more pleasure out of your work than if you only put the in the required amount. But at the end of the day, CLOCK OUT! Go home, do good, enjoy the food, the drink, the family, the dog, and whatever else God has given you a passion for – God’s work is accomplished in those things as well. And when your boss calls you to do something, tell him the same thing – Clock out!

1st Century Model for Christian Media

This is old news, but until this past Sunday evening I had never heard of Matt Heerema of Desiring God Ministries or the out-of-the-norm approach their ministry has taken to making content available on their website.  Matt showed up at a Tweetup at the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) Convention shortly before his keynote address, and if it weren’t for him it would have continued to be an awkward mess. Matt’s passion and skill in marrying internet tools and the mission of Christians was immediately evident and his vigor for the Word of God is unmistakeable – a trait that is wildly vacant from the lives of many young Christians, admittedly including myself.

During a panel-style keynote address hosted by Bob Lepine of Family Life, Matt Heerema and DJ Chuang discussed the influence of New Media on modern ministry and its integration into traditional media like radio, television, and print. One of the most energized topics was the approach that Desiring God has taken to delivering content on the web.  Three years ago the decision was made to pull John Piper’s radio broadcast from the airwaves and make the move to distributing content solely online. Taking it a step further, the team at Desiring God made the ministry’s entire catalog of content available for free – no holds barred. No membership, no credit card information, no surveys – nothing was to stand in the way of people receiving over thirty years of quality Christian audio, video, and text-based content.

What stood out to me the most was Matt’s intrepid delivery of a principle that we often forget in the bustle of online media.  It’s not about the media – it’s about The Message. Passionately citing a passage from 2 Corinthians 9: 8-10, Matt revolutionized my  personal view of ministry and the truth behind motives of giving and receiving, even in ministry capacity.

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; as it is written, “He scattered abroad, He gave to the poor, His righteousness endures forever.” Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness…

I really appreciate what is communicated in this passage – God supplies to us in order that we might supply others. And as we do so, God will continue to re-supply us. God’s blessing will never tire, so long as we are doing what His will is for us. And if the well dries up, it is a signal that God has a different task for us. God’s many promises of prosperity throughout the Bible are a reflection of His desire for us to obey Him so that He may fulfill the desires of our heart, so that in turn we will pour it back out on all around us. We are not vessels made to endlessly retain His blessings. We are made to spill them over and flood the world around us.

It reminds me of those many cartoons who get shot by a tommy-gun and then pick up a bottle of whiskey marked with ‘XXX’ and begin chugging. And just as soon as the stuff goes down, it starts pouring out of a hundred holes in his body. Classic stuff, really. But that’s what I think of. Even when I’m getting pelted by the world with bullets and arrows, I want to be the kind of Christian that lets God’s blessings and promises pour out of my wounds to heal those around me.

You Want Me To Love My Wife?

30 seconds ago I was working on a different post. Then I got a slap in the face when I went to the home page of BibleGateway.com to look for a verse for that other post. Today’s verse:

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Eph. 5:25)

It’s simplicity and poignancy stunned me.

Now, I don’t think I’ve been particularly guilty of not loving my wife, at least not in recent memory (though she might need to confirm that). Nonetheless, the first four words of this verse pack a potent punch that cannot, and must not, be ignored. It’s a simple command to Love Your Wives. If I were a pastor I would walk to the podium and say “HUSBANDS! LOVE. YOUR. WIVES.” and then leave. Because what else needs to be said? It doesn’t say “Husbands, hassle your wives.” or “Husbands, abuse, ignore, neglect, betray, lie to, yell at, and annoy your wives.” It also does not say “Husbands, love yourselves.” or “Husbands, love someone else’s wife.”

Paul uses four simple words to convey what is, in my lowly opinion, one of the most profound and influential commands in the Bible. It’s a fundamental building block not only for the family, but for the church. And when the family and the church are healthy and grounded in the love of Christ (the metaphorical groom), the world that surrounds us stands will become healthier as a result.

The verses following clarify the command a bit more as Paul continues to describe both wives and the body of Christ using each to describe the other. He paints a picture of the church, and essentially the wife, as being cared for by Christ so that she may be washed in the Word – having a radiant presence, and exsiting without stain, wrinkle, blemish, or blame. And while all of this remains up to the husband to ensure, it is done by obeying one simple task. Love. Your. Wife.

Starbucks Communism

Rain turned to slush in the skies over Clarks Summit, PA. I woke up, earlier than usual, to a soggy Monday morning with a mind to take advantage of the extra time before work. So I got ready, rotated the seedlings intended for this year’s garden, and naturally headed to Starbucks. The Clarks Summit Starbucks is okay in my book. Sometimes it has condensation control difficulties, and parking can be an absolute joke. But when all is said, it gets the job done. However, something happened this morning that has left me uneasy and feeling robbed of my right to choice. As I approached the counter to order my drink, and indeed began to request my “Grande Mocha,” all three of the baristas behind the counter began to glow with a pride that smelled eerily of smugness and self-admiration. And hardly had the words left my mouth when the drink was sitting in front of me on the counter.

“We saw you pull in,” they announced proudly.

“Oh, good,” I thought. “Stalkers and communists.”

This is what irritates me. Mondays can be a tough day. And though I typically enjoy them, certain things need to occur in order for me to get to my Monday morning utopia. And one of those things is receiving the simple, yet oh-so-very-profound sense of accomplishment and self-worth that comes with making the first major decision of the week: Starbucks. So naturally, when I walk in to find that a decision that I have paid $3.48 (I have a Starbucks Rewards card) for has been robbed from me, I am justifiably indignant!

And what about my right to wait? I’m not impatient for my Starbucks drinks. I would like to know that it was carefully crafted by well trained hands. Don’t get me wrong here… I know that Starbucks is the corporate farm of coffee shops where it’s not about nuance or atmosphere or amazing coffee – as much as they’d like us to believe that – but I do want my drinks to taste right. And if good things come to those who wait, what then for those who are forced not to wait? I fear that something less than good is in store for them.

But I’m not typically a wave-maker. So I muttered something about good service, gave my money to the greedy barista, and slumped down in a less-than-comfortable chair to complain to the blogosphere of my Monday frustration.

So, to the baristas and Starbucks ladder-climbers – hear my cry. Let me order my drink MYSELF!

Scranton and “The Office”

A friend from high school, now working in Marketing and Communications, posted a note on Facebook today about a writer doing an article about Scranton and “The Office.” The writer is looking for input on the topic. Here is what he says:

The article is on “The Office” and how the show has changed people’s perceptions of the city of Scranton. I am looking for a media expert to explain the impact pop culture can have on a small town like this. And I am also looking for anyone who has seen the show and has a strong opinion about the city. Please e-mail me if you can help (johngilpatrick@gmail.com). Thanks!

And here is what I say.

When “The Office” first aired in March of 2005, I was a transplant from the Scranton, PA area to San Diego, CA. I was rooming with some friends of mine from the same area, and we all, at the time, had an awful disdain for any association between Scranton, PA and ourselves. But instantly, when we found out that “The Office” was set in Scranton, we all had a very real sense of pride in our little town. Friends began to ask us if certain places actually existed and if the filming location was anything like Scranton. Suddenly we were experts on all things “Office” because we hailed from the same town that it was filmed in.

The first season was much more true to the grit and the atmosphere of what Scranton is really like. It’s rather dirty, and even the “upper management” people are a far cry from anyone you’d meet in New York City with the same job title. The first season was set in a more cluttered and unkempt office than you find in later seasons, which, from personal experience, is a more accurate picture of a Scranton office. Everything is old. Even the new buildings look old. Scranton was given the reputation of being the “armpit of civilization” a number of years ago by a newspaper columnist and it’s become almost a motto for the city. People here don’t really get up in arms about it…they just shrug their shoulders in half-hearted agreement and continue on with the day-to-day.

In essence, Scranton is just that. Day-to-day, mundane, and rather trivial. Until “The Office” put us on the map, I believe the last time Scranton was noted on screen was in “Home Alone 1″ when Kevin’s mom is stuck in the Scranton Airport and asks “Where the hell am I?” In truth, I think that’s what all Scrantonians are really asking.

Spring Is the Best Time for Monday Morning

I’m sitting at the Starbucks and wondering why everyone hates this day so much. I get the whole part about the weekend being over, and having to go back to a job that you probably don’t like very much, or even getting back to class.  But I think most people miss the beauty of a Monday morning.  Unlike any other day of the week, Mondays offer you a fresh start and a chance to apply yourself, and your mad skills, to all the stuff that the week is about to chuck at you. Think about it.  You’re rested from the weekend, most of you haven’t had to see your boss or coworkers for two days, and you haven’t had a chance to fail miserably at anything yet.  So naturally, now that it’s time to get back to the grind you should be ready to face it with renewed spirits (not alcohol) and tenacity.

So on this, the first Monday of a brand new spring, when the green is just on the horizon, and in spite of still being able to see your breath in the air, why not try to embrace a new approach to Monday mornings and enjoy it instead of loathe it.

iPhone 3.0…NOW Please!

I’ve been waiting for this since… Well since even before I had an iPhone. And I can see it in the distance. On the horizon is a speck, warped by the heat of the information superhighway, clothed in the majesty of OK that’s enough… Seriously though, Apple announced the iPhone 3.0 OS today. I’m waiting nervously (my leg is actually twitching) for th

e rest

of the story. The site says to “check back later today to watch the presentation about the new SDK and get a sneak peek at iPhone OS 3.0 software.” Honestly who writes this stuff? Where’s the quality assurance guy when you need him most. If it were me… I’d demand a parade with huge floats shaped like a pair of scissors, a piece of carbon paper, and a big bottle of glue, or maybe the Elmer’s monster. Why? (Drum roll please…) Because finally we will have cut, copy, and paste functions on the iPhone! It’s about time really. I would have thought that would be a standard feature from 1.0. Certainly 2.0… but alas, 3.0 has delivered, and now I can be at peace.

I’m not one of the clued in bloggers when it comes to Apple, so I don’t know much more about what’s in store for us. I’m just happy… and you know it.

Solve My Problems

Here’s a challenge for all of you creative types out there. The company I work for, Lamplighter Ministries, is expanding into new territory. Many new territories, in fact. We’re developing a much more multimedia minded branch as well as incorporating social media practices into our “marketing.”

For those of you who know anything about Lamplighter, one of our core operations involves republishing books originally published in previous centuries. They are hardbound books, often with authentic Italian leather cover materials. One of our goals is to maintain a high level of quality and beauty in these products. The newer portion of our ministry involves producing these books in “Hollywood” level audio dramas to be broadcast on the radio and sold on CD. In order to properly promote these productions, and increase general awareness of Lamplighter, we’re adopting many of the current social networking and “viral” marketing techniques. This is proves to be difficult for a company who has had a difficult enough time establishing any kind of web presence, let alone something that’s cutting edge in technology, yet true to it’s origins.

And so I pose the question: How does a company that is grounded in concepts and design trends dating back hundreds of years compete and be relevant in todays world and yet remain true to it’s mission and values? How do we offer up the same resources (social networking tools, new media, deliverable content, etc) as the most cutting edge organizations without betraying the basic principles that have helped bring us into existence (ie: age, beauty, texture, and moral value)?

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