Barnabas File

My wife and I had the opportunity to share lunch this week with a young Christian couple who pursue their vocations in a southeast Asian country. Although the young man originally went there to do evangelistic work, they now operate a ministry center that provides outreach, fellowship, and skill training for people in the community. The husband pointed out that he had initially seen his ministry as reaching people for Christ and then introducing them into local churches so that they might be discipled and nurtured in the Christian faith. He was surprised and disappointed when he discovered that this second step was more difficult than he had anticipated! The local churches erected barriers (both cultural and theological) that were difficult for new believers to overcome. In many cases, these barriers were western in origin--practices, worship styles, and customs that were completely foreign to the indigenous culture. As a result, this young man is helping young believers as they form a...

A couple of weeks ago I attended an ordination service in east Tennessee. Loyd Allen, professor at McAfee School of Theology, brought the "charge" to the young woman who was being ordained. He presented some excellent comments, but one stuck in my mind. He said, "Love the church but don't worship the church." He reminded the candidate (and all of those present) that the full allegiance for the believer is to God alone. He was warning us that worship of the church can become an idol. We may accept the fact that we are to love our spouse, or our children, or our work, and not to worship any of those, but can we accept that warning when it comes to the church? Are there times when we really seem to be worshipping the church? I think we worship the church when we are not willing to acknowledge its failures. Failure is not bad, but if we do not learn from failure, we are missing an opportunity for growth. I think we worship the church when we allow church acti...

I spent the last three days attending the Leadership Summit of the Willow Creek Association at one of the several hundred satellite sites to which it is broadcast. This is my fourth time to attend--once at the South Barrington , Illinois, campus. I am sure that there will be some who will wonder why I attend this conference and ask "What can you learn from a flashy, seeker-oriented, mega-church?" Honestly, I believe that this is one of the best leadership conferences offered. The program planners bring in a diverse group of speakers from the church, management, and business. This year's roster included Carly Fiorina , former CEO of Hewlett-Packard; Marcus Buckingham, author and management consultant; Colin Powell, former Secretary of State; John Ortberg , pastor of Menlo Park (CA) Presbyterian Church; Richard Curtis, writer, film maker, and poverty activist; and Jimmy Carter, former President of the US. They are not afraid to bring folks to the platform who might present...