"You can sit and watch it"

"You can sit and watch it."

This is what my 3 year old son said in response to the question we asked him about what I am to do when he plays "church".


"You can sit and watch it."

My son attends worship regularly, and while only being 3 years old, I think that he has and understanding of worship that is similar to what many people might consider worship to be.  If is something that one can sit and watch.  

 Currently, I am reading "Preaching in the Inventive Age" in which Pagitt addresses that the sermon is, which is dominated by monologue delivery, is something that contributes to the understanding that church is that place where you can "sit and watch".  

Pagitt argues for a "progressional dialogue" with clergy and laity in the preaching moment.  I cannot tell you how great this book is.  If you preach, you ought to consider Pagitt's book.  

Here is a link to all my highlights so far.  And for those of you who are like me and would just like a sampling, here you go!

• "This dependence on preaching as speech making has become a form of communication I call "speaching""
• "Speaching is not defined by the style of the presentation but by the relationship of the presenter to both the listeners and the content: the pastor uses a lecture-like format, often standing while the listeners are sitting. The speacher decides the content ahead of time, usually in a removed setting, and then offers it in such a way that the speacher is in control of the content, speed, and conclusion of the presentation"
• "Preaching has so uniformly been equated with speech making that any other means of sermonizing is thought to be trivial and less authoritative."
• "There are those who assume that if more people are allowed to share their understanding of teaching, theology, and faith, then there's a greater risk of the church losing truth. But the history of heresy shows that it's most often the abuse of power-not an openness of power-that creates environments ripe with heresy. The church is at a greater risk of losing its message when we limit those who can tell the story rather than invite the community to know and refine it"
• "I have come to believe that there's a kind of dehumanizing effect when, week after week, competent people aren't allowed to share their ideas and understanding; when, week after week, one person is set apart from the rest as the only one who is allowed to speak about God; when, week after week, people willingly, or by some sort of social or spiritual pressure, just sit and take it; when, week after week, they're taught that the only way to be good learners is to be better listeners."
• "It's simply untrue that people need their information in small, bite-sized or even "pre-chewed" pieces. The issue may not be that we have too much information or that we aren't presenting it in compelling ways but, perhaps, the information we've chosen is not all that interesting. New methods and exciting delivery will do little to solve that problem. A better or more tech-savvy speach is still a speach."
• "What I know to be true is not negated by others knowing more or other things. Truth is progressive, not regressive or zero sum. When someone knows something to be true, it doesn't remove the legitimacy of other truths but adds to it. We may not agree with the conclusions people draw, but we're better when we're moved to additional ways of seeing the world."

Preaching may not be proclaiming and proclaiming may not be preaching

There is that oft cited line in the Church, "Preach the Gospel always, and if necessary, use words."  This little line gets at the heart of the matter that the act of speaking to a congregation is not the only way to "preach the Gospel."  This is a bit of a no brainer for those who have been taught that actions speak louder than words.  Just because you you are not preaching does not mean you are not proclaiming the Gospel.  


This quote, however, sometimes is not considered in the inverse - just because you are preaching does not mean you are proclaiming.  Regardless of the quality of the sermon or the celebrity of the preacher, not all sermons preached are proclaiming the Gospel.  


America seems to have a lot of preachers (Osteen, Oprah, Jakes, Bell, Moore, Piper, Copeland, Hinn, Meyer, Hagee, Crouch, Dollar, Bynum, White, Warren, Willimon, etc.).  Some preachers are just crazy, and some are just funny. 


I wonder how many "proclaimers"  of the Gospel are there? 

When average is fantastic

There is a little movie called "Little Big League" in which the owner of the Minnesota Twins dies and gives the ownership of the team to his grandson, Billy.

(For all you nerds out there Luke Edwards was indeed the same kid who played Jimmy in the in The Wizard, and owned they guy who owned a Power Glove in Mario 3 to win the championship)

Billy is a big fan of the Twins and has gone to every home game with his grandfather his whole life.  When he becomes the owner, Billy fires the Manager of the Twins and hires himself to be the new manager.

The hilarity ensues.

Billy turns out to be baseball wise beyond his age.  While only being about 12 years old, Billy's baseball knowledge rivals that of Tommy LaSorda.

However, before Billy was the manager of the Twins, Billy was (and still is) a fan of the Twins.  His favorite player is Jerry Johnson.  Johnson was/is Billy's idol and was at one time a powerhouse of a player for the Twins and in the League, despite Johnson's recent slump in production and quality of play.  Johnson, has not done well for a while and everyone can see it, but Billy is unwilling to accept that his idol is no longer the powerhouse of a player he once was.

One game Billy sends Johnson up to the plate with words of encouragement and adoration.  Johnson swings and connects.  He makes it to first base with ease.  Billy goes nuts and turns to his assistant coach, Lou, to say, something to the effect, "See Lou! Johnson still has it."  Lou's response, "Hey kid, when was the last time you got this excited for someone who has just hit a stand up single, while going 2 for 25 at his last at bats?"

That was the straw that broke in Billy.  He decided to let his idol go and Johnson is no longer a Twin.

I wonder if my beloved church is like Johnson?  I wonder if I am like Billy and I become excited when the UMC hits a stand up single?  I wonder if I am blind to a reality that others see, an organization that continues to strike out time and time again and is unwilling to admit it and move on?

I fear that I will grow into a preacher that is like Johnson and the congregation is like Billy.  I fear I will lose touch so much so that when I am average it is seen as fantastic.

It is my prayer that I will work to ensure that the UMC will not settle for average.  It is my prayer that I would continue to strive to bring my best and acknowledge when I no longer "connect".