Gentle, and Occasionally Wild

I recently heard someone describe the Holy Spirit as gentle and occasionally wild. Something about that phrase resonated with me: Gentle, and occasionally wild. Most of the time, I find the Holy Spirit is gentle with me; God takes special care with me, and treats me with gentle grace. But there are those occasional times when the journey with the Spirit feels wild.

My daughter can be that way: gentle, and occasionally wild. She likes to cuddle, wear pretty dresses, and speak kindly. But she also dances in the rain, rides horses, and watches professional wrestling. She laughs really hard and cries just as hard. I know her really, really well, and yet I still find her unpredictable. Some days she wants her hair just right, other days she is hanging her head out the window while we drive. Sometimes her ability to change quickly exhausts me, but most of the time it delights me. She is beautifully alive. She is gentle and occasionally wild.

We are in a season of change in the church. Conferences and conventions have ended, new appointments are beginning, and many of us are reexamining how we do ministry in light of a culture that is rapidly changing. Others of us are on grieving the loss of a beloved pastor, and welcoming a new one into our church. We are in a season of change and it is in these times that the Spirit can feel especially wild. We might wonder, What God is up to in this time? Where is God leading us?

As we experience change in the church—and in the unique contexts in which we live and serve—it is easy to strive for a God we can get a handle on. We desire stability and clarity, so we look for a God who fits neatly into a category that we can easily explain and predict—but we don’t have a God like that. We don’t have a God we can tame. Not a God who does what we want. The Spirit of God is lively, free, and wild; this often means that things change and our surroundings look different. God moves us to a different place, or calls someone new to join us. It also means that we should seek to look at the changing surroundings with eyes of the Spirit, rather than only through the lens of our past experience.

New statistics from the Pew Research Center show that between 2007 and 2014, the number of Americans who identify as Christians dropped by nearly eight percentage points—a statistically significant drop. The report confirmed what many of us already knew; fewer and fewer people are going to church.

The statistics also show, however, that the number of people in America who say they have had some kind of spiritual experience—in essence, something they couldn’t explain, something mystical or transcendent—has gone up. The number of folks who claim that kind of experience has gone up thirty-eight percentage points in the last fifty years. Fewer people are going to church, but more people are saying they have experienced something bigger than themselves, something only God can do. More people are looking to give a name to something outside of what their normal words can articulate: something wild.

It is a reminder, of course, that though the church is experiencing change both locally and globally, the Spirit of God is still on the move. God is still calling out to God’s people. It makes me wonder what would happen if those people—you know, the people who aren’t going to church, but are still experiencing God—knew the church as something gentle and occasionally wild? What if our ministries and our blogs sought not to explain, but to point to a beautifully alive, mysterious, and gentle God? Kind of like at Pentecost, when Peter let a wild happening of the Spirit be an opportunity to tell people about Jesus, and how He had changed his life.

It is natural in these times of transition to feel anxiety and cling to that with which we are comfortable. Instead, I think this is the time to let the lively Holy Spirit give us courage to embrace change, and no longer conduct business as usual. Instead, we ask our new congregation or our new pastor to help us look with new Spirit—eyes at the people and places to which God has sent us. I’m trying to remember that change is part of the journey with God. And I am trying to remember that God is gentle, and occasionally wild.

Jacob Armstrong is the founding pastor of Providence Church, a six-year-old United Methodist church plant in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, reaching twelve hundred people each week. His latest book, The New Adapters: Shaping Ideas to Fit Your Congregation, co-written with Adam Hamilton and Mike Slaughter, is available at Cokesbury.com.

Books and Bobbles

When you’re on staff at a church that hosts a United Methodist District Conference, you’ve got to be ready to answer all kinds of questions. From an employee perspective, two questions are asked more than any others. In first place: “Where are the restrooms?” And coming in at a very close second: “Where’s Cokesbury?”

Cokesbury creates a kind of pop-up store at all district conferences (and at the Episcopal General Convention, plus the Disciples of Christ General Assembly, both singular annual gatherings) where pastors and delegates can purchase the company’s most popular items for personal as well as for church-wide spiritual growth. Conference attendees have the opportunity to tangibly peruse resources like books, curricula, calendars, and Bibles. Each host church provides a dedicated space for Cokesbury, and conference attendees make a beeline to the store between every conference session—after discovering the locations of the restrooms, that is. So if you didn’t have the opportunity to attend this year, or couldn’t squeeze in time to stop by Cokesbury while you were there, keep reading—here’s a summary of this year’s hottest items.

Flying off the Shelves

As the pastor of what’s been called the most influential mainline church in America—the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas—it’s no wonder that Adam Hamilton’s books have been conference bestsellers for the past ten years, and this year was no exception. In The Call, which was released just last month, Hamilton leads you from the Road to Damascus to the sun-drenched lands of modern-day Greece and Turkey to a Roman prison following the journeys of Paul. The book and complementing DVD are designed as a six-week study with components that can be used in any size group and are appropriate for adult, youth and children ministries.

Five Marks of a Methodist also resonated with conference attendees. In plain language, author Steve Harper answers the question “How should United Methodists live?” using the five identifiers established John Wesley: love God, rejoice in God, give thanks, pray always, and love others. This is the perfect book for explaining the Methodist way, which is why it’s no surprise to find it at the top of Cokesbury’s conferences’ best-seller list.

Another UM conference favorite from Cokesbury’s conference stores was the John Wesley Bobblehead. You read correctly: a John Wesley Bobblehead. The nine-inch Wesley doppelgänger first appeared on the scene in early 2014 and was so popular, Cokesbury couldn’t keep up with the demand. But much to the delight of conference attendees, Brother John was back in stock at the conference, and is undoubtedly bobbling his head in thousands of church offices as we speak; he can bobble for you, too.

The Impact of Having Roots and Wings

At this year’s Episcopal General Convention, it was reported that the updated Book of Common Prayer, General Convention 2015 and Bishop Michael Curry’s books were the hot-ticket items. As the first African-American bishop to lead a southern diocese of the Episcopal Church and now the newly elected Presiding Bishop, Michael B. Curry turned heads at the 2012 General Convention when he challenged his audience to be “called to craziness.” This address—now packaged as Crazy Christians: A Call to Follow Jesus—also makes a great companion piece to his latest release, Songs My Grandma Sang, which details the impact that music from his childhood had on his faith. Whether you’re rediscovering roots or learning more about crazy, divine love that can change the world, Bishop Curry’s candor and vibrant energy bring a refreshing change of pace to your personal or small-group study.

Just What the Doctor Ordered

Now every church is unique, but their problems? Not so much. In fact, strife within churches usually involves one or more of the same ten issues. Another favorite at Cokesbury’s pop-up stores was Ten Prescriptions for a Healthy Church, which keenly identifies where churches struggle most and provides much-needed hope and optimism in the midst of overwhelming concern. Authors Bob Farr and Kay Kotan offer practical strategies and real-life success stories to help congregations overcome common problems in targeted, ministry-specific areas.

For those of you who attended a denominational gathering this summer, what were some of your favorites? Tell us in the comment section below!

Judy Bumgarner is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tennessee. She also works at Brentwood United Methodist Church in the church’s Caring Ministry. Miriam Drennan serves as editor for Cokesbury Commons.

Annual Conference Take-Aways: Loving, Effective Action

If you attended a United Methodist Conference in May, you participated in discussions about change, you voted on leadership, and were updated on social justice activities. You return home and—while still dizzy with information overload—you’re immediately asked, “What happened at Conference?” How do you answer?

Todd Salzwedel, senior pastor at St. Stephen’s UMC [Albuquerque, N.M.], didn’t respond with a play-by-play of the voting session, or a recap of the decisions that were reached; he talked about family.

“Since geography plays such a role in our conference, it is often at Annual Conference that we get to reconnect and share with one another . . . like family spread out across the country, gathering for a family reunion once a year,” says Salzwedel, whose church is in the New Mexico Conference. “It’s always so amazing to hear how God is at work in the varied and unique corners of our conference,” he continues. “And while we may be small in numbers, the joy and desire to big in impact is abundantly evident in the stories and experiences we all share with one another.”

Rev. Taud Boatman, associate pastor, (First United Methodist Church, Owasso, Okla.), ordained elder, and member in full connection with the Oklahoma Annual Conference, experienced a ceremonial closure that gave his conference hope. “During the last year, our Annual Conference has gone through the process of re-districting and re-aligning our resources so as to better meet the needs of the people and communities we serve,” he explains. “Towards the end of our Conference gathering time this year, we celebrated a service of disbanding our old districts—while giving life and birth to our new districts.” According to Rev. Boatman, acknowledging this transition “was a very emotionally charged and worshipful moment . . . I came away with a renewed sense of purpose and mission. Our hearts and our spirits are to be set on fire for service and witness.”

Lynne Campbell, pastor at Londonderry UMC [Londonderry, N.H.], attends the New England Conference. Like Salzwedel, when she spoke about her Conference takeaways, she spoke of the family within the body of Christ, summing it up in a small, yet powerful anecdote. “It happened during lunch outdoors,” she recalls. “A woman tripped on an uneven brick walkway and fell forward, obviously injuring her shoulder. Immediately, the body of Christ sprung into loving, effective action.

“Someone alerted the hotel staff to call an ambulance. Someone else rolled a tote bag into a makeshift pillow for her head. Another gathered her things. Her son and daughter-in-law rushed to her side with words of comfort. Others offered silent prayer. Someone went back into the lunch line for water.

“Her two young grandchildren were also present, wide-eyed and confused. Someone brought them snacks and later, when the EMTS arrived, two clergywomen took the children for a walk so they wouldn’t be frightened if their grandmother cried out in pain at being lifted onto the gurney. The body of Christ responded to this woman’s immediate need, and the needs of her family, with prayer, presence, and compassionate action.

“Back in session, the entire body prayed for her and rejoiced to hear later that evening, that she would be released from the hospital without needing surgery. It was this moment in the midst of annual conference ‘business-as-usual,’ that touched my heart and allowed me to see God in work within and among us—wherever we are, and whenever we gather as the body of Christ.”

What about you? Share your conference “family reunion” stories with us. Where did you witness loving, effective action? How do you answer the question: What happened at Conference?

Judy Bumgarner is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tennessee. She also works at Brentwood United Methodist Church in the church’s Caring Ministry.

Like, Maybe That’s It!

In the name of hate, twenty-one-year-old Dylann Roof went on a deadly shooting spree in Charleston, South Carolina, and amidst the grief and shock we wonder, “Is there something we can do to reach the Dylann Roofs in our community before it’s too late?” There just might be.

Michael W. Smith had already founded Rocketown, a safe place for teenagers to hangout in Nashville, Tenn., when he was asked to take part in the memorial service after the Columbine High School shootings in 1999. The experience increased his zeal to show young people that they are loved and valued, leading him to expand Rocketown into a

36,000 square-foot building that houses a concert hall, and indoor skate park, a coffee bar, a recording studio, and dance studio.

Come Chill

“I think the most important thing that we offer: healthy and nurturing relationships,” says Youth Engagement Coordinator Stephanie Grant. “Our desire is to create an environment where kids feel safe being themselves, but also feel empowered to try new things and to pursue growth and education.”

Sixteen-year-olds Josh and Spencer are Rocketown regulars. “My friend told me about it, and we both walked up here and started hooping and I actually kind of enjoyed the place,” says Josh. “I was like, ‘it’s pretty cool’ and the more I came, the more I liked it.”

Spencer grew up at Rocketown. “My dad looked up ‘skate parks’ in Nashville when I was three, and he brought me here,” he says. When Spencer, who now works in the facility’s skate shop, invites a friend to Rocketown, he can sum it up in about two words: “Come chill.”

Light on the Hill

Skate boarding, snow boarding, and other extreme sports have provided teen outreach opportunities to churches and Christian organizations across the country, especially when it comes to teen boys.

In an interview with WOTV earlier this year, Ezra Heethuis, a sophomore at Cornerstone University (Grand Rapids, Michigan), talked about how snowboarding consumed his life and as a Christian, he knew he had to make a change in his priorities. “God’s given me this passion for snow boarding, and I’m okay at it, so how can I use that to glorify him?” he explains.

He discovered Snow Boarders for Christ and it changed his whole perspective. “I’m like, maybe that’s it,” Heethuis says. “Now snow boarding is a fun activity that I get to do instead of something I worry about. We concentrate on getting people, growing people in their faith, and holding each other accountable. We’re just about being friendly on the hill.”

Good Vibrations

The Underground Skatepark started with a group of boys just killing time together in the basement of Celebration Community Church in Dillsbury, Pennsylvania. While their parents went to Bible study, the boys played floor hockey and skateboarded. The basement became “the” place for teens to hang out, and has turned into a major teen ministry for the church.

In a video on the Underground Skate Park’s website, a teen skater explains it’s appeal. “It’s just a good space to come and relax—it just has a good vibe,” he says. “It doesn’t matter how bad you are, or what your style is. Everyone is accepting of one another.”

Check It Out

A surprising number of Christian extreme sport organizations already exist, and many are actively looking for new areas to plant a club or chapter. Search online for “Christian extreme sports” and “Christian action sports,” and you’ll find an abundance of information on these topics that will bring anyone up to speed. And be sure to check out the books listed below for even more ideas and inspiration.

Hosoi: The Rise, Fall and Redemption of a Legendary Skateboarder

Fire in the Core

Live Out Loud

Spiritual Adventures in the Snow: Skiing and Snowboarding as Renewal for Your Soul

Soul Surfer

After the Fall: A Climber’s True Story of Facing Death and Finding Life

A Young Man After God’s Own Heart: Turn Your Life Into an Extreme Adventure

Judy Bumgarner is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tennessee. She also works at Brentwood United Methodist Church in the church’s Caring Ministry

It’s Messy—But Worth It

 

VBS has broadened, expanded, and doesn’t fall into a specific formula any more. In fact, some churches no longer offer Vacation Bible School, and Wednesday night programming encompasses the whole family instead. Others have morphed VBS into a summer daycamp. If you’re looking for a late-summer alternative, a summer addition to keep kids engaged, or wondering if you could DIY, keep reading.

Arts Camp

St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Denver, Colorado, switched from traditional Vacation Bible School to “Arts Camp” a few years ago and they haven’t looked back. A day at Arts Camp starts with all children gathering for songs and games plus Bible study, which relates to each year’s theme. The children are then divided into classes for art, which is later displayed for the whole church to enjoy; music, where children might learn to play a Native American flute or compose their own song; or drama, where campers learn from activities, such as role-play.

Christina Clark, the church’s Family Minister, says their Arts Camp is not crafts-based; rather, it’s centered on projects that give children an opportunity to go through a true artistic process. “It’s messy,” she concludes, but worth it to see the creativity that comes to the surface.

Creation—A Form of Worship

“One thing I love about our art projects is that no two ever come out exactly the same,” she smiles. “This is of course a wonderful entry into the idea that God created each one of us in His image, yet none of us is the same as any other . . . that we each have our own special gifts and talents, given to us by our Creator, and that creation is a form of praise and worship.”

Currently, there are more non-parish registrants, but “in the end, it looks like it will be about fifty-fifty,” Clark says. “People in our community seem to appreciate that this camp is ‘gently faith-based, with an emphasis on social justice’ which is how I describe it in the flyers I post around the neighborhood.”

Joyful Conversation and Laughter

Christ Episcopal Church and Community Reformed Church (Manhasset, New York), hold a combined arts camp instead of VBS. The churches’ director of spiritual formation, Lesley Mazzotta, authored a post on Key Resources, a blog from Virginia Theological Seminary’s Center for the Ministry of Teaching. “Using structured activities and free exploration, along with joyful conversation and laughter, we encourage imagination and curiosity, expand the art of collaboration, and inspire self-confidence, authenticity, and personal growth,” she writes.

Mazzotta says kids at their camp participate in arts and crafts, painting, drawing, collages, and sometimes even use trash to celebrate the world through creativity. “Everything was included as we explored how to care for and live more fully in this remarkable world knowing that we are God’s greatest creation,” she explains.

How Hard Could It Be?

Children’s ministry directors who stick with traditional VBS are sometimes tempted to create their own curriculum. How hard could it be, after all? Before you jump on that bandwagon, you might want to read what Children’s Ministry Magazine has to say. They compiled advice from those who tried to create their own VBS program with less than fruitful results and shared the six main reasons why it might not be such a good idea in an article titled, “Why Not Write Your Own?”

Perhaps one of the most important bits of shared wisdom stressed that children’s ministers may have great writing skills and years of experience with children, but those valuable qualities most often don’t translate into effective curriculum creation. “Think about it,” the article states. “Would you want every history teacher in your schools writing their own textbooks? That’s best left to professionals.”

Although summertime offerings are all over the board, two things are universal: An abundant opportunity exists to reach kids with the message of God’s love, and the prayers of many will ask that something the children learn or experience sticks with them forever and ever. Amen to that.

She Wrote the Book on It

Christina Clark, a family minister from Denver who organizes a popular and effective Arts Camp featured in the same article, has had so much success with her summer program that she’s written a book about it. Arts Camp releases in October and includes everything Christina has learned about what it takes to put together a thriving program that combines Bible study and artistic endeavors.

Clark says that even if a church doesn’t want to veer away from their classic VBS program, elements of Arts Camp can be woven into whatever theme kit is chosen. “A church could pick and choose specific art projects, or music selections from the book to add to their VBS,” she says. “Or they could use the Arts Camp model to expand on a VBS.”

She also encourages small churches in small communities to consider Arts Camp. “Flexibility is key no matter what size camp, parish, or town you have,” she explains. “Two to three parishes could combine beautifully to create an ecumenical arts camp. The biggest challenge would be in finding enough people to create a good team, but the book lists many ways to search and find artists to make your camp successful.”

“My hope is that the book can be a resource that’s usable in a variety of situations, from creating a full arts camp to providing supplemental material for any other ministry or activity of the parish.”

Click here to pre-order your copy of Arts Camp by Christina Clark.

Judy Bumgarner is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tennessee. She also works at Brentwood United Methodist Church in the church’s Caring Ministry.

I’m Booored

Now is about the time kids are going to start whining that familiar, mid-summer refrain: I’m booored. You stifle the urge to say, “Well you could help me fold the clothes/clean out the garage/empty the dishwasher/trim the hedge/(fill in the blank) and then you wouldn’t be so bored!” Instead you . . . well, what do you do?

Boredom is Scary

“For many young people, ‘I’m bored!’ is a complaint about uncertainty, about not knowing what’s going to happen next, about what should be happening next, about what’s worth doing next,” says Nick Luxmoore, a psychodrama psychotherapist in his online column for Psychology Today. He suggests that boredom might be an opportunity for parents to have a philosophical discussion with their child.

“What if we saw boredom as a transitional experience, as an interesting lull? Then we might begin to talk with young people about how scary it is, not knowing what’s going to happen next,” he continues. “We might share our own experience of the panic boredom sometimes precipitates, of how addicted we can become to things new, unusual and exciting. We might wonder with young people about whether being able to be bored is a sign, not of being a boring person, but of maturity.”

That Means You

In her blog, “Thinking about Kids,” Dr. Nancy Darling writes, “Oddly enough, one of the reasons that many kids and teens have trouble with knowing what to do in the summer is that they haven’t been bored enough. From a developmental perspective, kids have very little experience learning how to find things to do for themselves. They might know what they like to do, but they have little experience figuring out how to make good things happen.”

“And if they don’t have a friend available to play with, and they don’t have a sibling who wants to play with them right then and there,” she continues, “that means they want to play with you.”

Play Takes Practice

Darling acknowledges that it’s hard for parents to find time to play, but sometimes ten minutes is all it takes to get a kid engaged in an activity. She suggests getting them to talk about a toy, what they like best about it and what it can do, and she says to make sure you respond with lots of “oohs and ahhs.”

“Kids show what they love to the people they care about. The more they care about you, the more they want to show you what they’ve done,” Darling explains. “And the more you share their experience—ooh and ahh—the more they care about you. You can do this from across the room or wandering in and out.”

She says that spending time with younger children, teaching them how to play, will help keep boredom at bay when they get older and find they have no one with whom to play. “Play may be natural,” she says, “but it takes practice.”

Darling says there’s an added benefit that comes from playing with your kids. “You may find that you get better at—and more interested in—playing, too.”

Where do you start? We’ve shared a few ideas of our own:

• Family Fridge Fun
• Press Here game
• Endangered Animals puzzle
• VeggieTales Seek and Match game
• Promise Box
• 31 Days of Drawing Through the Bible
• Busy Board for Toddlers
• Scripture Scraps
• Sole Hope Party

So now it’s your turn. How do you practice play with your children?

Judy Bumgarner is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tennessee. She also works at Brentwood United Methodist Church in the church’s Caring Ministry.

The Charleston Tragedy: How Should We Respond?

The ugliness of hatred and its historic vestiges have again darkened a sacred space. This is not the first time the black church has felt the wrath of white supremacy. White supremacy has long influenced the life of black congregations and the individuals they serve. During the 1800s, white supremacists would attack black religious organizations to stir fear among black leaders and to squelch efforts of black uplift. Tragedies like Charleston remind us of 16th Street Baptist Church and the bombing that killed four little girls. The work of arsonists who set fire to a string of churches in the south in the mid 1990s. Or three men in Massachusetts imprisoned for burning a predominantly black church in protest to President Barack Obama’s 2012 campaign.

The black church was founded in response to anti-black hatred, resistance and terrorism. This is particularly true of the African Methodist Episcopal connection established under the leadership of Richard Allen because, “…as being forcibly denied access to the Methodist church based on their skin.”

Since its formation the black church has been different and multi-dimensional in scope. By default and for its survival the black church had to be different and all-encompassing. Albert J. Raboteau accounts for the origins of these complexities in his discourse on the religious history of African-Americans. Raboteau writes:

The history of African-American religion exemplifies America’s long and dramatic engagement with ethnic pluralism and the central role race in shaping American life. Thousands of Africans from diverse cultures and religious traditions, forcibly transported to America as slaves, retained many African customs even as they converted to Christianity. Before and after the Civil War, African-Americans drew religion to its moral and prophetic calling making it the center not only of African-American culture but a challenging ethic of equality and dignity throughout American society.*

In the wake of recent events and a barrage of theological queries that overwhelmed even me, we can draw strength from the experience and explication of the African Methodist Episcopal church. Our Methodist kin’s motto should encourage and embolden our spirits: God our Father, Christ our Redeemer, Holy Spirit our Comforter, Humankind our Family.

God is with us.
While we may not understand the providential nature of God, it is what it is. God is, even in tragedy, God whom is present. It’s not by accident that, even in this moment, God reminds us of that by fact by the very location where such things happen. There is no right place for wrong action. There’s no right way to do things that are unrighteous. For evil, there are no lines of demarcation in this life. God is Emanuel. God is with us. Even right now, and as I’ve talked with people, they’re most disturbed by the brazen nature of this and other violent acts. The malice and the motivation is obviously racial intolerance. The fact that a 21-year-old could be so bigoted in his beliefs, and diabolical in arriving early, listening to the word of God, and then think he’s doing someone a favor by not killing them so she would tell the community why it happened leaves even the most devout bewildered. Still God is Emanuel.

Christ our Redeemer
What is our response? Our response at all times, in Christ, is focused on redemption. I don’t know how you redeem or reconcile at this point other than expressions of forgiveness, expressions of tribute. At some point we have to take off our sackcloths. Likewise “lady justice” must be unmasked to the reality that what is politically and constitutionally right is not always righteous. We need to live up to the spirit of law, not the letter of the law. Our practices have to be consistent with our faith because no one knows the day or the hour.

Holy Spirit, comfort us
Our hearts are pierced by the pressing interrogative of Rabbi Harold Kushner, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” These are critical times for the church. Amid uncertainty, lives are being questioned whether they matter. Anti-otherness, indecency and violence are challenging our communal existence. Yet, the calls to remain steadfast in faithfulness are before us. Healing is both a painful and protracted process. But help, comfort and better days are promised.

Humankind our family
War, retaliation and retribution are not the answer. The only thing that will conquer hate is our deciding to love. Such is the imperative of discipleship to love. Love that is unconditional. Situations may result in catastrophe. Circumstances may seemingly justify condemnation, but that’s not what Christians are allowed to do. We are not allowed to counter-punch. We are required to love in the face of pain, prejudice and persecution, doing so unconditionally.

This is a tragedy not just to Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal in Charleston. It is a tragedy felt across faith traditions. An evil enacted against the human family. The African Methodist Episcopal church is a strand of the Wesleyan tradition, and we need to understand how its trauma inextricably impacts us, then infinitely enlist to respond to it.

*Albert J. Raboteau. Canaan Land: A Religious History of African Americans (New York: Oxford Press, 2001), ix.

F. Willis Johnson is the senior minister of Wellspring Church in Ferguson, Missouri. This article appeared originally in the June 19^th issue of Ministry Matters.

Beyond Fear

On the third day following the violent and tragic death that was meant to end his life, Jesus entered into a locked room filled with frightened disciples who believed that if people killed Jesus in such a violent way, they could do the same to them. In the midst of the fear of the outside world, Jesus says, “Peace be with you. As the Father sent me, so I am sending you…Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:21-22, CEB).

In the wake of the tragic events in Charleston, South Carolina, many churches have begun rethinking how they approach church security. Even as we collectively mourn, we cannot help but ask whether we are safe in own places of worship. We might even be a little afraid for ourselves, and for those whom we care about. The basic stance of most churches is to create a posture of welcome and openness. So when tragic violence—especially that which impinges on the doorstep of the church or, worse yet, crosses the threshold—tempts us to hide away and lock the doors for fear of those who might do us harm, it is the nature of the love of Jesus and the resultant Christian witness to cast out such fear.

Even as I encourage a bold and resilient posture as the church engages the world, I would also suggest that it is wise and prudent to consider and reassess safety protocols at the local church level church while giving thought to the atmosphere of hospitality that a church wants to create. I encourage giving thought to each time the church is occupied taking into account weekend, weekday, and evening gatherings. Documenting and communicating the safety protocol will go a long way toward renewing confidence among church staff and attendees that the church has taken steps to foster a safe environment even as it works to create a welcoming one for visitors and those seeking the aid of the church.

Finally, I turn back to the event that prompted this post. Today, we continue to remember those saints who perished in Charleston, we give thanks for their lives and take heart knowing that death is not an end for those in Christ. For the scriptures declare: “Death has been swallowed up by a victory” (1 Corinthians 15:55, CEB). We live each day with a certain amount of risk. Every decision to love one another – every decision to live in the vulnerability of real community that embraces a spirit of hospitality creates the possibility that we might get hurt. Yet we maintain the faith. Christ’s mission is to the world. Indeed, Christ’s mission is to those who are sick. Continue to live beyond fear. Receive the Holy Spirit, and remember the words of Jesus, “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Rev. Justin K. Coleman serves as Church Ministry Officer for The United Methodist Publishing House. A native of Houston and a member of the Texas Annual Conference, Rev. Coleman is a graduate of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, and Duke Divinity School in Durham, North Carolina.

What You Can Do Now: From Security Specialists, an Evangelist and a Psychologist

The definition of Christian hospitality doesn’t include the idea of locked doors and metal detectors, but what if your church could provide a more secure environment by implementing under-the-radar safety measures?

“As long as the church security is handled in a low-profile manner, no visitors will even know there is a security plan in place,” says Brian McKenna, owner of Winning Edge Training (Hazelwood, Missouri). He says that although training is crucial, most people just aren’t equipped with the skills needed to handle a violent attack. In addition to developing an emergency plan and safety training, McKenna advises churches to put together a team of specifically qualified volunteers.

Experience a Plus

“Just about every congregation can find a least a few members who are concerned about this problem and are willing to put themselves at risk. Try military veterans and active or retired law enforcement officers for starters,” he says. “Station at least one properly trained member in the parking lot who can spot armed or otherwise potentially dangerous individuals early and notify a predetermined person inside to lock the doors.”

Tim Dodd, CEO of Patriot Protection (Plano, Texas), agrees that most people don’t have the right mindset to do what needs to be done in a dangerous situation, especially against an active shooter. “Contrary to what most people believe, people tend to be very slow in calling the police during this kind of emergency,” he says. “And it takes a considerable amount of time for the dispatcher to dispatch responding units and get them to the scene.”

Dodd also believes that training needs to be more than a classroom PowerPoint^® presentation. “Training as realistically as possible is the only way to possibly understand how hectic and terrifying the situation can be,” he says. “All too often people mistake paranoid for prepared, and prepared for trained and these misconceptions can have dire consequences in any situation.”

Crook, or Saint?

As the founder of At His Feet Ministry (New Haven, Connecticut), Beverley Vaughn speaks at about one hundred churches a year, all across the globe. Her mission work has even taken her into the Muslim portions of Uganda, China, Burma, and Haiti where practicing Christianity is risky at best. “My faith allows me the feeling of security,” she says. “I have to believe I’ll be okay, or I wouldn’t be able to continue what I do.”

Although her faith sees her through, she understands why experts like McKenna and Dodd are advocates for specialized training. “Parishioners should be trained to recognize suspicious behavior along the lines of how police officers and military personnel are trained,” she explains. “Just like the armed security that is with the Pope…the worship experience isn’t diminished because of it.”

She says it comes down to balance. “Everyone isn’t a crook, and not everyone is a saint, but we mustn’t make the saint feel like a crook or vice versa,” she says. “Church leaders and members of society should be equipped to maneuver whichever way the circumstance dictates with not only wisdom from above, but with practical wisdom as well.”

Relationship Matters

Dr. Thomas Boyce, president of the Center for Behavioral Safety (San Carlos, California), says depersonalization is often a component in the psychology of violence. “Everyone has had the experience of behaving in an aggressive way towards a driver that has cut him or her off,” he explains. “We do this because we depersonalize the driver.”

“Activities that promote personalization and getting to know those in a community can decrease violence. We start to build relationships, and as a result we remove the depersonalization and anonymity from the equation.”

Relationships…community…ring any bells? Do you think your church’s outreach programs and hospitality efforts have helped to curb violence? Please share your experiences.

Judy Bumgarner is a freelance writer in Nashville, Tennessee. She also works at Brentwood United Methodist Church in the church’s Caring Ministry.