Barnabas File

Is it possible that what we have learned about our faith can get in the way of our faith development?     Much of my Doctor of Ministry research was informed by the work of James Fowler.     Fowler suggested that are stages of faith development which connect to cognitive and emotional development. In his book,   Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning ,  Fowler outlined how individuals construct meaning and trust across their lifespan. Based on research, this framework spans from childhood's intuitive, literal beliefs to mature, self-transcending faith.    One of the things that we must wrestle with in considering Fowler’s model is determining how what we absorbed in the earlier stages of life either contribute to our ongoing faith development or gets in the way. For example, as a child and teenager, I learned a high regard for the Bible, the scripture of my faith.  I still remember passages that co...

When we present our “elevator speech” about coaching, are we drawing the circle too small? In promoting coach training, I have often referred to the process as “an additional tool in your ministry toolbox.” As I talked with a ministry leader recently about coach training for his denomination, I realized that coaching is much more than simply a skill. I needed to enlarge my perspective and see coaching in a new light.   First, it is a biblical approach to developing disciples.  We believe that each person is “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14) and is unique in the sight of God. Because of this, each of us has a special calling, one that can be discerned through interaction with a coach. As believers, we are also commanded to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18, NIV). Entering the life of faith is just the beginning because we are invited into a process of lifelong learning and serving. This journey can be facilitated ...

“How can a coach help someone to grow as a disciple of Christ? Does coaching help in spiritual formation?” As a Christian who is a practicing coach, you have probably been asked such questions. These are big, challenging questions, but in this context let’s limit our discussion to how coaching can be used in the church to develop believers in their growth and service.   When Mark Tidsworth and I wrote  Disciple Development Coaching: Christian Formation for the Twenty-First Century,  we started with one major assumption: people are coming into the fellowship of the church today from many different backgrounds. Some have been believers for a long time, although not necessarily in the faith tradition of their present fellowship. Others come with little or no Christian background, but with many life experiences and exposure to a variety of belief systems. Of course, some are grounded believers with a clear understanding of the Way of Christ. The biggest mistake that a church ...

Sociologist Brene Brown once said, “What we know matters, but who we are matters more."  This applies to our understanding of Christian discipleship.  As Christians, we often struggle with the balance between orthodoxy (right knowledge or doctrine) and orthopraxy (right practice or action). This is the challenge that James presents when he writes, “ But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.” (James 2:18, NIV)   Both right belief and right action are necessary in the life of a follower of Christ, but can one get in the way of the other?   Historically, Baptists have been very good at communicating information about the Bible and the faith.  They delight in asking questions of scripture that exegete the text in an attempt to understand the who, what, how, and why of the passage.  We are less open to letting the text speak to us.     For e...

For those who have never experienced theological education, the response to this question might Your “Isn’t that what theological education all about?”  Well, “yes” and “no.”  Theological education is a spiritual, educational, and skill development experience.  In addition to learning about biblical interpretation, theology, and doctrine, seminary students learn how to lead worship, preach, provide pastoral care, and lead congregations.  Although one would assume that spiritual formation is an intrinsic part of this experience, the assumption is based on intentionality on the part of the students, the faculty, and the seminary leadership.  It doesn’t just happen!   Perhaps today more than ever before, there is agreement that spiritual formation is integral to preparing well-rounded, effective religious leaders. One reason is that many students now come to seminary with only a marginal experience in being part of a community of faith...

When I grow up, I want to be like Barbara Brown Taylor.     I long ago realized that Taylor is one of the finest Christian writers of our time but reading Holy Envy:    Finding God in the Faith of Others reminded me of the humility and inquisitiveness that makes her work engaging.   This book recounts not only Taylor’s experience of teaching world religions to undergraduate students in a liberal arts college, but her own growing understanding of what it means to learn from other faiths, embrace truths that enrich one’s own spiritual journey, and wonder how far “holy envy” can be indulged without becoming covetous!  Simply put, holy envy is discovering that another’s faith tradition may provide something that is missing in one’s own.   Early in the book, Taylor quotes the late Krister Stendahl’s three rules of religious engagement:   When trying to understand another religion, you should ask the adherents of that religion and not its enemies....

Let me start with a confession:     I never refuse the gift of a book.     I may not read it immediately, but I am honored when someone wishes to share with me a book that has impacted them I some way.     For All Who Hunger:     Searching for Communion in a Shattered World is such a gift.      In the Missional Imagination class I teach for Central Seminary (Shawnee, KS), we talk about creative ways to engage our culture with Christian presence.  One of our students in a class last summer was experimenting with dinner church in her home.  She was gathering friends regularly for a meal, fellowship, and worship.  In class and in subsequent conversations, she reported some of the lessons she was learning.  Out of her interest, she discovered this memoir and shared it with me.   Emily M. D. Scott’s work is a memoir—more of a reflection of a spiritual journey than a recitation of facts—and sh...

We lead busy lives.  Often the important loses out to the urgent.  Important things are those that reflect our personal, emotional, professional, and spiritual values.  They become our “north star” to guide our lives.  The urgent is often what happens when we don’t attend to the important.  As Christians, we seek clarity about those things that are essential for our growth as disciples. When someone says to me, “I don’t feel that I am growing as a Christian. My life seems to be going nowhere.”  My response is, “Are you practicing the things that are important to you, the things that give your life meaning and purpose?  How’s your prayer life?  Your devotional reading?  Your fellowship with other believers?”  Often, my friend is neglecting those basic practices of life and the results are clear. This has been a challenge for believers since the time of Christ.  How d...

Everyone has a story to tell.  In our fast and busy world, we rarely take the time to listen to each other’s stories or simply to reflect on our own.  When I taught Formation for Ministry classes for Central Seminary, I took the time to share a bit of my own story and ask students to share theirs as well, but there was always more there than we were able to process. Being aware of the power of story, I was pleased to discover  Living a Narrative Life:  Essays on the Power of Stories  by Keith Herron.  Herron draws not only on his own extensive experience as a pastor and a counselor but shares his own life story to help the reader understand the value of understanding her or his own life story. Herron writes, “All of life is a story.  This is the richness of life:  to know your own stories, to value and understand them with others.  In doing so, we are all enriched.”  He enc...

Where you do find the best information about what is needed to get the job done?     You go to those on the front lines, people who deal with the challenges daily.     This is what Luther Seminary in St. Paul did. During fall 2018, faculty and staff teams from Luther Seminary visited a dozen Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) synods across the nation for listening sessions with pastors, lay leaders, and synodical staff to ask this question: “What do leaders need to know, or know how to do, to be faithful and effective in a rapidly changing world?” The report generated from these conversations identified seven key themes: connect with God; cultivate community; innovate faithfully; connect with diverse neighbors; equip the saints; shift ministry models; and deepen administrative leadership. Early last year, I conducted a research project with a much smaller sample, but many of the same themes emerged. These findings provide both theological...

This week I was part of a group reviewing Bible study lessons for a special emphasis in our congregation.  The participants were of different ages, and the classes they teach represent several different stages of life--young, median, and senior adults. As we reflected on the scriptures, reviewed goals, and discussed teaching approaches, I was reminded of several things. First, how we respond to scripture is necessarily conditioned by our stage of life.  Even those passages that we have read repeatedly expose new insights as we experience life.  A passage that might have been a challenge for personal growth when I was a college student now calls me to invest in the lives of others. Blessing, tragedy, love, loss--these change the lens through which we read the Bible. Second, when we are teaching a particular age group, especially one that is different from our own, we must not assume that we know their mindset.  As we plan our lesso...

In   A New Kind of Christianity , Brian McLaren writes, “It is worth noting in this regard that the word ‘Christian’ occurs in the New Testament exactly three times and the word ‘Christianity’ exactly zero. The word ‘disciple,’ however, is found 263 times.”     It is also interesting that “member” is only found 45 times in the New Testament and 9 times in the Gospels. Of the 263 references to “disciple” in the New Testament, 235 are in the Gospels.    This seems to have been Jesus’ preferred term for His followers. Being a church member is not necessarily the same thing as being a Christian disciple. The SHIFT process takes this emphasis into account by challenging the 21 st century church to move from the idea of church membership to Christian discipleship.  We don’t need more members, we need more disciples who are responding to the call of God into the world. How do churches go about addressing this and encouraging the movement of indivi...

What is your definition of “discipleship”?   In general usage, a disciple is one who follows the example and teachings of another person.   In the Christian context, a disciple is a follower of Jesus Christ, one who seeks to practice his teachings and make them a part of her or his life.   Living out the teachings of Christ is generally called the act of discipleship. Several years ago, I joined my colleague Mark Tidsworth in training church leaders to use coaching principles to help others to grow as disciples.  We called the process “Disciple Development Coaching.”  Both Mark and I have a rather comprehensive view of what it means to be a disciple.  Our concept (and I think the belief of many others) is that discipleship encompasses all of life—not simply our spiritual practices but the way we care for God’s gifts to us, act in our relationships with others, and pursue our vocational callings. In a recent conversation, someone chall...