Africa Team Commissioning Litany

For 3 consecutive Sundays we have included a commissioning for various mission teams that have gone out or are about to go out from the fellowship that I serve. Yesterday morning we commissioned the team that will be going to the village of Karima in Kenya. Sometimes I find it hard to find good litanies for mission team commissioning. I also find it even harder to write them ... usually.

I wrote the litanies we used the past three Sundays. Yesterday's litany, I think, worked well for us. I felt that our people connected with it and that it connected us with what is really going on as we send out mission teams. I post it here for anyone who desires to use it as is or adapt it to your particular situation.

Commissioning for Kenya Mission Team

P: “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
C: "He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
P: “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you
gave me something to drink …'”
C: “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?’ …”
P: “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’ (from Matthew 25:31-40, NIV)
C: We have seen the pictures from the village of Karima in Kenya. We know that there are people struggling to survive without adequate clean water.
P: If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. (James 3:17-18)
MT: Because we love God, we are compelled to go and to do what we can to provide water … so that these people may know that God loves them.
All: O God, we pray for this team we are sending to the people of Karima. Use them to display Your love. We pray also for the people of Karima. May the water they receive for their physical needs lead them to understand that there is living water for their souls through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Ya Gotta Love This Guy

Charles and I were acquantances at Seminary back in the 1980's. I say acquaintances because I don't remember having any academic courses with him since he was a class or two in front of me, but we sang together in the Men's Choir the year we did Aida with the Kentucky Opera. Dr. Turner directed the Men's Choir and was also the choral director for the Kentucky Opera. Turner recruited the entire Men's Choir (along with some of the Kentucky Opera Chorus men) to sing the role(s) of the priests of Phtah. Anyway ... that's how Charles and I came to know each other. He's got a delightfully quick wit, a keen mind, and a deep love for Christ and His church. While we were in rehearsals in the weeks before the performances, he made the hours we spent in the green room waiting for our cues much more enjoyable than they otherwise would have been.

A couple of years ago I discovered his blog and reconnected with him via the internet. He blogs at:

www.blogitch.blogspot.com

If you look at my previous blog entry, you will see that I attempted a light-hearted dig at my friend. It's not the first time it has happened (and it will not be the last), but I have been royally outclassed. In response to my little dig, Charles looked back at his own blog entries, analyzed the content, and blogged about it. He took no offense from my dig (or at least I detected none from his blog entry), but graciously and objectively responded to my critique. People, this is how a Christian gentleman does things. This is what Christ-like character looks like. And this is why I try to associate with people of such character. Charles, I doff my hat to you, my friend.

Now, I still maintain that I'd rather read Charles's blogs that are more about ministry-related issues and less about what is going on in the political arena, but that's just my personal preference ... nothing more, nothing less. I also accept his explanation that -- especially where his more political blogs call attention to issues of justice -- they are indeed about theology ... theology with skin on, if you will.

And that's all I have to say about that.

So Who Reads This Silly Blog Anyway?

I'm wrestling with whether this is an act of vanity or not. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. Maybe it just doesn't matter!

Over on the right you will notice a ClustrMap. I saw this on my friend Charles's blog, thought it was neat, and added it to mine. Each red dot means that someone from near that geographical position accessed my blog. The larger it is, the more times someone from that area landed here. Usually a little dot means that someone may have randomly hit (I've done that, but not recently as I haven't really had the time), or landed here accidentally and never intends to land here again. If you look at Charles's blog (www.blogitch.blogspot.com), his map is cluttered with hundreds of regular readers ... and it was that way even before his political posts outnumbered his theological posts. (Charles, that's a dig, just in case you're wondering -- I do love you, but I'm not voting for Obama).


Once a year, they archive the map, clear all the dots and it starts over again. They just did that with my map. I can access the old map, but it's going to be interesting to see which dots grow and which ones stay the same.

Incidentally, you can get a ClustrMap too. Just click on it and you'll find links that take you through the process. It's pretty idiot-proof. Enjoy!

Segregation in worship

And this guy makes a cogent point as well.

http://www.newcitypres.com/blog/?p=396

Afternote: Just did a little research on the author ... grandson of Billy Graham. Hmm.

3 Lies of Church Growth

My friend Charles had this link on his blog. Interesting perspective. I don't think the lies are intentional ... so do we call them lies or misconceptions? Misconceptions might be more accurate. Worth reading nonetheless. I think Adam McLane is mostly right in what he says.

http://adammclane.com/2008/07/10/3-lies-of-church-growth-experts/

Thoughts on the missional life.

Several, several months ago I discovered the Allelon podcast ... I think it was when a friend sent me a link to an eye-opening interview Allen Roxburgh was conducting with Sally Morgenthaler concerning a shift in position from some of her assertions in her book "Worship Evangelism." Here is a link to the video of that interview:
http://www.allelon.org/articles/article.cfm?id=534

The Allelon podcast hasn't been updated in several weeks, so I went to http://www.allelon.org/ to ask whether they had abandoned the podcast. While there I took a moment to look at the most recent blog entry, this one by Len Hjalmerson (isn't that a great name?) on what it means (or doesn't) to be missional. This got me to thinking big time:

http://www.allelon.org/missional_journey/?p=123

I was particularly challenged by Nouwen's assertion that our drive for productivity is often more driven by fear than anything else. It feels true to me. I have come to the realization that I live a lot of my life in fear of not measuring up to some "acceptable" standard.

Now, properly held fear is a good and healthy thing ... keeps us from taking unnecessary risks physically, relationally, financially, etc. When we hold fear, that's what happens. But when fear holds us and paralyzes us, it's another story altogether.

This raises a question in my mind: How much of what I do (and, more importantly, HOW I do it) comes from the house of love ... first Christ's love for me and then my reciprocation of love for Him empowered by the Holy Spirit ... rather than from the house of fear? This is important for us to consider as followers of Christ. It is equally important for churches to wrestle with. This is heady stuff, but it's crucial. It's a wood, hay and stubble v. gold, silver and precious stones kind of thing.

NOTE: This post may go through several editions before I leave it alone, but ...

That's enough to think about for now.

It Is God Who Holds the Nations (Fred Pratt Green)

It is no secret to anyone who has been reading my Musings for any length of time that I often rely on “borrowed wisdom” for content. Sometimes I share stuff that I think up, but most of my content comes from reading and listening to others. I used feel self-conscious about borrowing, but no more, thanks to a quote from Charles Haddon Spurgeon I read yesterday: “He who will not use the thoughts of other men’s brains proves he has no brains of his own.” So taking the flip side of that coin: when I share other people’s thoughts with you, I’m actually proving my own intelligence!
Speaking of the thoughts of other men’s brains … as I was planning this evening’s Wednesday worship, I ran across a wonderful new hymn text that give us some food for thought as we prepare to celebrate the most significant date in our nation’s history later this week. Fred Pratt Green wrote it in 1976 (so it’s not all that new) for the Battle Hymn tune. I found it quite meaningful and wanted to share it with you. It’s good poetry.

1. It is God who holds the nations in the hollow of His hand;
It is God whose light is shining in the darkness of the land;
It is God who builds His city on the Rock and not the Sand:
The living God be praised!
Glory! Glory, hallelujah! Glory! Glory, hallelujah!
Glory! Glory, hallelujah! The living God be praised!

2. It is God whose purpose summons us to use the present hour;
Who recalls us to our senses when a nation’s life turns sour;
In the discipline of freedom we shall know His saving power:
The living God be praised!
Glory! Glory, hallelujah! • • • The living God be praised!

3. When a thankful nation, looking back, has cause to celebrate
Those who win our admiration by their service to the State;
When self-giving is a measure of the greatness of the great:
The living God be praised!
Glory! Glory, hallelujah! • • • The living God be praised!

4. God reminds us every sunrise that the world is ours on lease –
For the sake of life tomorrow may our love for it increase;
May all races live together, share its riches, be at peace:
The living God be praised!
Glory! Glory, hallelujah! • • • The living God be praised!

That’s enough to think about for now. The peace of Christ to you.