MISSING MIDWINTER!


The Covenant Midwinter Conference, that is (not the snow, cold, ice, frigid temps of the middle of winter...). This year I chose instead to stay home in Hilmar so when the film, “To Save A Life,” opened I could experience it again with the junior guys in my small group. This movie made such an impact on them at CHIC, and when I was filling out my Midwinter registration form, my hand literally froze, preventing me from completing it--and I knew I was supposed to be here and help students process everything that this very honest, graphic movie might bring up for them. It was the right thing to do, and worth it too.

Also, we’re experiencing budget challenges, like churches everywhere these days, and so my decision helped our current financial situation too.

Then, there is the fact that Pastor Bruce is leaving us soon. Just four more weeks! I feel it’s important for me to stick around and be present here at church during these closing days of his ministry at Hilmar Covenant, so that’s another reason why I didn’t dash off to Denver for a week.

But I sure missed not being at the Midwinter! It is always such a great time of renewal, stimulation, challenge, re-connection with people, worship, learning, and encouragement, coming in the middle of the ministry year when pastors and church workers often feel tired, frustrated, disillusioned, even burned out with the many responsibilities and burdens of ministry. The Midwinter is a real shot in the arm, and always helps me get rejuvenated, recharged, and excited again about the important responsibilities that are mine as a full time minister here at Hilmar Covenant.

Praise God for the internet! This made it possible for people at the Conference to share what was happening in Denver all week, and give those of us who could not attend a taste and a summary of the experience. Just reading the reports of each of the speakers’ presentations got me fired up and passionate again about the privilege it is to be a minister of the gospel of Christ.

So for my blog post this week, I am going to give all of you an opportunity to taste the Covenant Midwinter Conference too. I’m going to highlight a few of the points from the messages of the various speakers that were particularly insightful, provocative, and challenging to me, and then attach the link to the message so you can learn more--if your interest is piqued!


FYI, the theme of this year’s Midwinter was “Living Our Affirmations: The Necessity Of New Birth.”
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Monday night, January 25
“These four words - Your sins are forgiven - are still the most powerful words on earth.”

“When God’s word is taught passionately, it draws a crowd. This is as true today as it was 2000 years ago. There is no need for flashy technology...or video clips or gimmicks to draw people in; just a bold and passionate presentation of the gospel.”

Four characteristics of good evangelists: 1. a good evangelist’s heart aches for those who don’t know Christ. “In our churches today, we can become so focused on doing our ‘Jesus thing’ that we are not aware of those around us who need Christ.” 2. a good evangelist is willing to break the rules. “Too often in churches today we focus on all the reasons we can’t reach out rather than the reasons we could. Sometimes God does not give us everything we think we need to push us to be innovative...and break some rules.” 3. good evangelists offend Pharisees. “Things that are closest to the heart of God are often most offensive to Pharisees.” (um, that would be US in our churches...) 4. good evangelists change lives.

"Your Sins Are Forgiven"
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Tuesday morning, January 26
“There is no cookie cutter approach to individual spiritual growth - it is not something that can be mass-produced, but must be handcrafted for each individual.”

“How do you define a person who is mature in Christ?” Some responses: loving, generous, joyful, humble, forgiving, active, confident, serving.

Three questions: 1. are our churches regularly producing this kind of people? 2. how is your church doing in producing people with these qualities? “On a scale of 1-100, where does your church fit?” A show of hands revealed...most hands falling into the 40-60% range. 3. if at my church we keep doing what we’ve been doing, will it get us to where Paul thought we ought to be? “It’s not about programming. It’s about this gospel gripping real human beings.”

“We give people the wrong gauges to measure spiritual life. The difficulty in gauging spiritual life by the level of spiritual activities is that, in Jesus’ day, the Pharisees would have come out on top! The great challenge for us today is how to gauge in such a way that the Pharisees do not come out on top.”

"Remaining In the Flow"
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Tuesday night, January 26
“What about our (Covenant clergy) journeys of transformation? Are we as diligent in caring for our own souls as those that we serve?”

“Within the Christian Church, we tend to view spiritual growth as disengagement from the world instead of engagement with the world. Many Christians are content to measure their spiritual growth by the effort to learn about God, serve in the church, and enjoy their quiet times. Many times discipleship has been redefined as a weekly meeting at Starbucks with a mentor who helps me grown in my understanding of God and how my spirituality facilitates my personal growth. That has nothing to do with the world. Many pastors or Christian leaders do not include evangelism or service as part of the growth and maturation process. As a result, our version of discipleship looks very different from the experiences Jesus introduced to his disciples.”

"Spiritual Growth: More Than Hanging Out With Believers"
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Wednesday morning, January 27
“We say we want to follow Jesus, but at the same time we want a map. And then we worship the map because it gives us security. If there were a formula to fix life, certainly Jesus would have told us. He didn’t. Formulas do not offer heart change, only control. The path with Jesus is not a ‘safe’ way.”

“I have grown weary of being handed packets of spiritual formation materials. The ‘rules’ for proper spiritual formation do not fit every situation. If the spiritual practices one is using do not lead to God, then one should feel free to pursue a different path that ultimately leads to God.”

“We need conflict and loss and surrender in our lives. There is nothing like crises to break down our infrastructure and require us to be dependent on God.”

“We cannot hurry transformation. It is not about efficiency. You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry.”

“Comparison is one of the deadliest obstacles to our spiritual development. We all have a calling of who God is calling us to be. And you won’t find that in the life of someone else.”

"Formula & Transformation - They Don't Equate"
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Wednesday evening, January 27
“Church can be a scary place to go. Many people lack familiarity with the religious trappings that most Christians take for granted.”

“People have special parking places, they have special seats, and they are very friendly--with each other.”

The reality: analysts today are trying to understand why fewer people darken church doors and remain disengaged from traditional religious institutions.

“I know that signing a card or walking forward in a meeting does not a conversion make. Only God knows when it happens.”

“A gospel that has no words is not the gospel. Some things are so complex that it takes words to get them across. The gospel of Jesus Christ is more than words, but never without words. But it also takes works! If it wasn’t important for God to send Jesus to show us his love, he would have sent us a book to read. (citing Haiti) When the early new reports were able to get out to the public, the only people they could interview were missionaries who were there long before the earthquake. They were loving on people before it happenend. And the truth is that when all the governments have ended their aid, the church of Jesus Christ will remain.”

“Wherever people are being saved, and wherever compassion and justice are happening well, the Holy Spirt’s in command. We need to see the miraculous to really believe God is here in this suffering world.”

"A Simple Old Message"
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Every year when I return from the Midwinter Conference, I know that the almond trees are getting ready to bloom, my camellia buds are bursting, days are getting longer, and winter is essentially over. This week, I have watched this process with my own eyes, and it is a relief to see the first huge bright red camellia blooming outside my kitchen window right now! May your winter end soon too--wherever you live! And may forgiveness, renewal, transformation, and growth be yours as we move into spring 2010.