A Node in the Web of the Emerging Church
Broward County Cohort - Emerging Beach
Broward County Cohort – Emerging Beach
An Emerging Church Conversation in Broward County, FL. We are Christ-followers and others, on a journey to grow closer to God and one another, and to transform our community through “bringing heaven to earth.”
Join our Meetup Group, Broward Emergent Christians, to learn about meetings and other events.
For more information, contact Steve Werthman or Robin Martin.
Broward Cohort - Emerging Beach
- September 09 Meeting[Note: While we have met every month through 2010, meeting summaries like this one are running a bit behind. Thank you for your patience.]“I don't want knowledge, I want certainty” - David Bowie, from the song Law, on his album Earthling.Ten of us gathered at Laura’s Cuban Restaurant on September 1st to share a meal and continue our conversation about emerging and missional church and what it means to us. We discussed excerpts from Scot McKnight’s book, A Community Called Atonement focusing on Pentecost and the Holy Spirit in our lives.We looked at Act 2:17 & 18, Jeremiah 31:33 and McKnight’s comments, “The covenantFor Robin M., “internal” meant we now have the law of God in us instead of external to us, and it is God himself who is explaining it to us. The religious leaders of the day got caught up in externals, in laws, and missed the bigger point.We talked about how God works in the midst of brokenness and seeming chaos. Melissa has seen how the Spirit has restored and healed people, within groups and families.We explored how the Spirit “recreates the community of faith.” Deb talked about how God works through our weaknesses, “The more cracks in your pot, the more light for others. Cracked pots water the flowers.”Kennedy talked about how Christianity keeps reverting back to hierarchies, power relationships and conditional love. It’s easier in many ways to be told what to do. On the other hand, following the Spirit internally can be tougher, but is the way that really heals. It’s the Spirit who inspires us to live in true community instead of the camouflage of religiosity. Robin M. added that the church adopted the idea from theKathy said that people often feel the loneliest at church. They don’t fit in or people are not being real. There are superficial handshakes but people are too busy with church programs to deal with people’s needs. John added that healing many times needs to start with oneself.We concluded that conversion most often happens through relationships and that “Christianity is caught and not taught.” Kennedy said that for the Spirit to work through us in relationship, we need to not approach others with an agenda, “to put another notch in our Bible,” but just for who they are. Deb ended with a Holy Spirit prayer.
- August 09 Meeting
Eleven of us gathered at Laura’s Cuban restaurant on August 4 to share a meal and continue our conversation about emerging and missional church and what it means to us.First, Anthony told his story about how he became interested in the emerging church and how he joined us at our table. Anthony is a professional musician, a multi-instrumentalist, and wants his music to bring healing, or at least to help people to forget their troubles for a while. Anthony graduated from college in the late 90s and worked as a school teacher until 2005. He became a Christian in 1980 and has been involved in church in some form since 1981. His experience with church too often has been about churches being hung up on collections, and manipulation by clergy. He saw some of this “behind the scenes” while traveling with an “evangelist/prophet.” He is also disappointed with how Jesus has been portrayed to the world, in ways that don’t center on loving God with all our heart, soul and strength, and loving our neighbor as ourselves. And he sees an absence of meaningful discussion about what the scriptures really mean about “loving…ourselves,” in a godly way.Anthony yearns for truth and fears that too many Christians, often as taught by institutional churches, stay in the foyer of God’s house and don’t fully enter in to God’s healing, intimacy, nourishment and passion. He says that we can see Jesus’ passion when he overturned the tables of the money changers in the temple. And we can see that church is not just a building, which it too often mistaken for. In all of this, we can see that something’s not quite right. On the other hand, Anthony, who is a New York Italian, takes a lesson from Southern European families as an image of the Kingdom of God. He is inspired by Revelation 3:20 where Jesus invites us to have supper with him. And that this is a form of intimacy which God and we crave. Anthony says, “We’re always asking God to do stuff for us, but He is lonely.” Jesus came to restore what was lost in the garden, intimacy with God and with one another, as deep as the passion between a man and woman. God’s all about relationship and too often we go through the motions and forget the passion.Finally, Anthony is concerned that a lot of us are Christians because “we’re afraid of going to Hell.” And because of fear-based religion, we wind up sometimes missing the life here and now that God calls us to in Acts 2:42-47 to care for one another’s needs out of love.John agreed that there is too much emphasis in the church on money and that this reflects the same over-emphasis in American culture. Steve. F. added this phrase for how we keep score: “nickels and noses and Bibles brought.” And Kathy said you have to have money if you need to maintain a building and pay for “stuff.” Ann said we have to remember the foundation we’re built on, which for her is Jesus, and that there is a danger of us becoming a bitching club. And she asked what are we? Tom talked about the struggles of important Christian movements and the importance of being willing to re-think church. Because of what Anthony shared, he wants to be his friend. He wants to meet Jesus, not a pastor on a movie screen. Robin M. said that we are not “a church” per se, but when we gather we are church. He agreed that it is important to re-think what it means to follow Christ, and he asked how the conversations over the past year have impacted us?Michelle said that feels free to be herself and follow the Spirit without worrying about what preachers or co-congregants will think. She is tired of church politics and wants to be about the business of doing God’s work. And she now enjoys going to different gatherings. Steve F. came to meet people and make friends, and he has. One of the most important take-aways has been not having to focus on “who is in and who is out,” but that where we are headed is more important. Revelation often occurs over a long period of time. Jim said that he feels that he has been “emerging” for the last 15 years, that the most important aspect is making disciples, and that he has found that missing from this group. Deb said she felt the Holy Spirit drew her to the group. And what she has found are people who work with the homeless and are missional in other ways. She finds that the people here live what others talk about. She shared about her prison ministry and how “organic” church there impacts lives. We ended by sharing stories about how God has acted in our lives in miraculous ways, and there was some working out of our understanding of the source of that miraculous power since Pentecost.Salute!Steve - July 09 Meeting
"Part of the joy of church is worshipping with people you love."
- Melissa
Twelve of us, including several newcomers, gathered on July 14th at Laura’s Cuban Restaurant to continue our conversation about emerging, missional and organic church and what it means to us. The diversity of Christian traditions represented at the table was interesting to note. We came from Episcopal, Adventist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Baptist, Pentecostal and Salvationist backgrounds to name a few. Since our first Meetup was a year ago, we started to discuss how the conversations have impacted the way we live our lives. First, Melissa told her story of how she came to know about emerging Christianity and how she came to our table.
Melissa’s family included many pastors and missionaries. She spent much of her childhood with her family in the mission field and working for churches in places like Haiti and Dominican Republic before moving to Tennessee and finally South Florida. When she was finally settled in school her family declined to move once again to Africa since that would have meant boarding school for her and her siblings. They came to Broward County after the church in Tennessee closed their missions training program leaving her father jobless. This disappointment influenced her feelings about denominational, organized churches and how they can sometimes actually damage the lives of the families that are part of them.
Once in Broward County, Melissa’s father continued pastoral work in the denomination and did telemarketing on the side. During this time, she was exposed to and took part in many opportunities for service to those in need. This included outreach to children in the impoverished Overtown section of Miami every Saturday. Despite its challenges, these experiences taught her that serving others is simply part of what it means to be a Christ-follower.
Melissa eventually became a leader in her church youth group and became involved in Intervarsity. Shortly after High School graduation, Melissa’s sister moved to Mongolia to do missions and many of her friends moved away. During this time, God was able to demonstrate for her the importance of Christian community, which includes service to others. Also during this time, she met Robin M., who would become her husband, at a Bible Study in her house.
Eventually, Melissa began to visit other churches including a house church in her home and went to other churches with friends. She described these visits as tortuous, and the churches as either dull or over the top with emotionalism. She finally settled on the house church at her parent’s. Here she found real discussions about things that mattered. Melissa worked in homeless services at the time and the house church started gathering at one of the shelters. Her father stopped doing pastoral work at the large church they had been attending. Although the congregation was large, there was little participation in service or community and few new people were joining. He, and a few others, led this church gathering in the shelter for a time. So, for Melissa, gathering at the shelter for church meant that faith and her work that she loved with the homeless interacted in a missional way.
One day, Melissa’s husband Robin M. shared with her that he was thinking that he should go to school and become a pastor. Her reaction was, “of course you should,” and they moved to Canada where Robin attended seminary and interned at a local church. Here, Melissa and Robin met people who really cared about them. This care was not only about asking how they were doing but caring in practical ways, like baby-sitting. The focus now was on small church planting. During this time Melissa and Robin made connections with people who changed their lives, encouraging them to grow and to care about others around them. They learned that part of the joy of church is worshipping with people you love.
Once back at home in Broward County, Melissa and Robin started visiting “regular” church for a time. Then they began a small church gathering in their home and they have been privileged to participate with others in community. Returning to work with the homeless they are again able to see the missional interaction of faith with serving and helping and getting to know others. Melissa said that she doesn’t necessarily read all the books on emerging church, but simply looks to see what works or doesn’t work in practice. One thing she enjoys about our gatherings is the combination of fellowship and food. Anthony brought up that sharing meals has been, and should always be, a big part of “church.”
Next, we discussed some of the reasons behind the move towards emerging, missional and organic church. Michelle said that church is not about going to a building but that the she sees the Holy Spirit drawing more people towards relationship with Jesus and meeting the needs of others. Talking about small church gatherings compared to mega-churches, Kennedy said that he was able to find real community when he was at Willow Creek, a congregation of 18,000. He felt the key was the intentional way the people there went about relating to others, including newcomers. Beth said that she has seen few large churches like this. Michelle felt that fear of intimacy contributes to the anonymity found in many churches. For Kathy, worship and service to others is a key to what church is.
Finally, Anthony mentioned that one thing that is too often missing from church teaching and practice is attention to the importance of loving oneself. After all, we are taught to “love your neighbor, as yourself.” And without a healthy regard for self, it is difficult to share a healthy love with others. Steve W. said that Scot McKnight views “atonement” as having four directions: love for God, love for others, healing within oneself (along the lines of what Anthony was saying) and love for God’s world. We talked about God’s unconditional, sacrificial love for us, since we were created in His image, and the negative side of self-love which can be the problem of pride. Kennedy has heard the balance expressed this way - Jewish tradition relates the story of a rabbi who sought to understand his place in the universe. To keep a balance between too much pride and too much self-loathing, he had two notes, one for each of his two pants pockets. One note read: “For me the world was created.” The other note read: “I am nothing more than dust and ashes.” The task of the rabbi is our task: to integrate these two messages and keep them in appropriate balance.
We decided to meet again in a month to continue our conversation and share another meal together.
Blessings,
Steve W. - June 09 Meeting
“People I am in community with are people that I can share things with that I’m most ashamed of and still be loved and accepted ... they are ‘refrigerator friends’ who can walk in and go to your refrigerator and take your last beer.” - Kennedy
Eleven of us met on June 2nd at Laura’s Cuban Restaurant in Hollywood to continue our discussion about postmodernism, community and emerging church and what it all means to us.
First, Kennedy shared his story about his spiritual journey and how it led him to the emerging church conversation and to our table. Kennedy is from Chattanooga, TN, the son of a Presbyterian minister. Having grown up as a pastor's kid and seeing some of the more problematic issues of church, he never wanted to go into ministry. At the same time, he had a passion for the church and a need for Christian community. In college Kennedy was part of the party scene. But he felt God used that time to break down his defenses in order to relate better with people. And he became known as kind of the unofficial “chaplain” of the party crowd he hung out with. One thing he noticed during this time was that everyone he met was on some kind of spiritual quest.
Kennedy decided to attend seminary. The experience stretched him, but also left him burned out. He eventually took a job in NYC in public relations working for celebs and dance clubs. He also worked in a church in upper Manhattan, where it was trendy and politically correct. The church also happened to be near the offices of people who campaigned for peaceful change in Central America. With them he was able to re-engage in church as mission locally recalling that “A light that shines the farthest, shines the brightest at home.”
Thereafter, Kennedy wanted to travel and visited multi-ethnic and multi-cultural churches during a mini-sabbatical. While in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia he experienced almost a second conversion as he gathered with vibrant church fellowships where members cheered as people walked down the aisle towards the alter towards transformed lives. This, he felt was the ultimate cause and God ignited a fervor in him to see more lives transformed by the God of love. During his travels, he would often hang out with the regular folks, doing what regular folks do (not always what church-going folks might approve of). During these times, conversations would turn to spiritual matters and the people that Kennedy hung out with were shocked to find out that the “church” had anything relevant to say about faith. During the sabbatical he explored the Taize Community and visited Willow Creek Community Church. During this time he also became engaged to marry, and then “dis-engaged.” And during this time he learned to desperately depend on God.
In DC, Kennedy became involved with a multi-cultural Baptist church. Here, he also met and conversed with Brian McLaren, author of A New Kind of Christian and who was pastoring at Cedar Ridge Community Church in MD at the time. They discussed the post-modern, emergent movement and how it can impact a very modern denomination like Presbyterianism. Kennedy went back to Long Island and made and saw major shifts in his church, focusing mainly on people re-connecting. Three years ago he came to Hollywood, FL where he pastors at First Presbyterian Church. His vision is for a congregation that is more organic, centered mostly in people’s homes, and one that reaches out to folks in Starbucks and bars more than one centered in a church building. He found out we have an emerging church Meetup close by and decided to check us out last year.
Matthew asked what Kennedy sees as the road map to move beyond the walls of traditional church. Kennedy feels that the key is to help ignite a passion in “church people” for the people who are not there, where diversity is valued and nothing is unexpendable. Steve F. shared how frustrated he is with a lot of “visions.” He wants to touch something supernatural when people get together. Kennedy agreed and clarified that “vision” arises out of community, not focus groups. We briefly discussed how these conversations typically involve movements such as “house churches” and “de-centralized leadership” which are more common models outside of the West. Steve F. gave some push back by imagining how irrelevant various “movements” can seem to Jesus.
Steve W. read a blog post from Scot McKnight, Kingdom Gospel 5, which concludes, “The Gospel is about church formation before it is about personal formation.” Michelle felt it has to really be the other way around, that you can’t have church transformation without personal transformation. Kennedy added that, that best happens when personal transformation happens in community. “You just can’t say a few words, a ‘sinner’s prayer,’ and typically expect transformation to happen right away.” Matthew felt that the post describes a road along which personal transformation happens, with community at the end. In the process, a new, alternative kingdom is created, where healing and justice replaces the broken society we too often encounter around us. Steve W. was reminded of John Wesley’s quote, “There is no holiness but social holiness.” Robin M. said though that is not about a “social movement” but about how we relate to one another.
Steve W. read some excerpts from Robin M.’s seminary paper, “Postmodernism, Community and the Emerging Church, Part 2 – ‘Restoring Community.’” Michelle asked, what is real community? To Robin M. it is about real relationships over time, starting with family. It is not a shared activity as is commonly thought of but is relationship based, and these relationships are not without problems that have to be worked through. Kennedy thinks of it this way, “People I am in community with are people that I can share things with that I’m most ashamed of and still be loved and accepted. These are people you can call at 2:00 in the morning. They are ‘refrigerator friends’ who can walk in and go to your refrigerator and take your last beer.” We agreed that we’re in community with our friends when we are committed to each other through both the fun times and the rough patches. Community can be messy. Robin M. said it this way, “A lot of people have not been loved through their issues and been shown God’s unconditional love by others. This is what it means when it’s said that the Christian life is caught more than taught.” Kathy added that this has to involve both people in a relationship being vulnerable with each other. Kennedy said he is very vulnerable with people in his church. And that he doesn’t have many clergy friends because they seem to feel they have to wear a mask. One of his closest friends is a Rabbi who is a recovering alcoholic. Finally, we were reminded of an observation by Mother Teresa who has seen so many in the “Third World” who have nothing in terms of material possessions, but who were beaming because they have each other.
We prayed for each other’s needs that some of us shared and agreed to meet again in a month to continue the conversation.
Steve - May 09 Meeting
“It’s more important to make a difference than to argue about our differences.”
Ten of us gathered for a time of conversation, community and Cuban food on May 12. We continued to discuss postmodernism. Michelle joined us as a newcomer and we went around and all shared a little about ourselves and our own spiritual journey. This turned out to be a great way to hear where each of us is at, individually, and as we have been coming to the table together.
We shared and heard many of the same themes, first about what people were coming away from: legalism, always studying but never arriving, facing so many hurdles we become tired, constraints like this music or art is acceptable and that isn’t. Then we shared and heard where we’re moving to: community, seeking the face of God, creativity and being culturally relevant, serving the homeless and needy, loving God and loving our neighbor. It was a good time of sharing which led us to Beth telling her story…
Beth’s Story
Beth was a “missionary kid” (MK). Her dad is a United Methodist pastor and growing up in Southeast Asia and Central America helped shape her worldview. Following the Biblical example, she recalls her father helping a homeless man with leprosy, and instilling the attitude, “maybe one could get leprosy this way, but it’s the right thing to do.” Church was positive and comfortable, with a focus on "right living" and outreach, but without rapture stories or “hellfire & brimstone” sermons. On the other hand, growing up as a missionary kid influenced who Beth became, giving her empathy for outsiders and a sense of why we’re here…to look out for others in Christ's name. She was able to express art, creativity and talent, and at age four aspired to be a “ballerina missionary.”
Growing up in Central America at the beginning of a period of civil war, knowing of people being jailed and persecuted throughout the Americas, and later--liberation theology and living in community houses all gave Beth a more mature concept of what Christianity is about. And that it is not simply a service on Sunday mornings.
Beth married Flavio (See Oct. 08 Meeting for Flavio’s story), who is from a Mennonite background, while in college. They lived for a while in San Antonio, TX near an area of government housing characterized by gang & drug violence and drive-by shootings. They joined a “peace circle” among the residents (all immigrants and refugees) and later began a community meeting where they met regularly, read the Bible, and experienced and talked about the ways God was intervening in their everyday lives. One result of the peace circle was that peace did indeed breakout and this violent block became known as a place where it was safe for kids to play and one where people tried to move to and not away from. Beth and Flavio lived among the poor, who had minimal access to healthcare, where it was a struggle to feed one’s family and people lived on the verge of homelessness. This also influenced how they themselves lived, in community, with people committed to living "missionally" and taking turns cooking, cleaning and taking out the trash and re-cycling. This incarnational living is a demonstration of God’s love by meeting the obvious needs of the people around us. And while not an overt evangelistic crusade, this living is infused by faith and only possible through a deep faith in Christ.
Beth shared about different styles with which churches approached ministry in the poor neighborhood. Some church congregations would come with loud speakers and tracts and try to get people to go to their church. They didn’t go. The people in the government housing project explained they didn't go to the church of the people with the tracts and loudspeakers because, “They’re only here on Sunday, and you’re here every day and know what it's like.” Beth also shared a story about working with laid-off garment workers who were locked out of the factory. They didn’t believe they had the right to raise their voice until they learned that God does hear the cry of the oppressed. And finally, she told a humorous and blessed story of holding communion in the housing project in San Antonio, with the (Matt. 10:11) woman of peace and her husband who had a tendency to imbibe too much. They sent him to the store to buy the wine for communion. He came back with a bottle of Thunderbird. So there they were, in beloved community, with no professional clergy… remembering Jesus…with tortillas, and a bottle of Thunderbird wine for their communion. These simply were, as Melissa put it, the elements we use in every day life.
After Beth and Flavio moved to Broward County they began encountering emerging Christians, such as at Epic Re-mix church. And they began to read books like Velvet Elvis and Surprised by Hope. All of this resonated with their own spiritual journey. Following Christ became less and less about how to get people into structured church organizations. It became more and more about gathering, being disciplined and learning from other Christians. At the same time they no longer felt called to a structured church congregation, they also felt there was a whole lot more to do. Life was to be missional, and flexible. It was to happen where we live and be expressed by how we relate to those around us. We’re here also to do this with other people and not be a lone ranger. Following Christ is not a trip about “my own personal Jesus.” It is a journey into community, with God and with others. Living in a poor neighborhood has been part of Beth & Flavio’s spiritual journey. It is counterintuitive in our culture.
Melissa observed that the way we relate to people can break down barriers that keep us separated from God and from each other. It doesn’t mean that we have all the right answers, but that we walk alongside one another on the journey.
One of Beth’s main take-aways from her life’s experience is that it is ok not to have all the answers, and to simply listen to what God has to say through others.
This led to a discussion about incarnational living and what that means. The Christian gospel has too often been reduced to well reasoned arguments, which Michelle equated with pride. Steve F. recalled his many years in the church which relied on well reasoned argument…about salvation, evolution, and what a Christian is supposed to be and look like and believe. Where it all falls down he said is when you’re faced with a real live person, including a son, a daughter, a wife, who doesn’t fit neatly inside the box. Michelle said that knowledge is good but it is not what is going to get us into the Kingdom of Heaven. It’s more important to make a difference than to argue about our differences. Kelly told a story about a time when he was at Piccadilly Circus in London and a street performer gathered a crowd by making fun of Christian caricatures. When he was done he turned the tables and told the crowd, “Now, I want to tell you about Jesus.” The reaction of the crowd was probably not what he expected…everyone kept laughing at him. We concluded that if we’re not relational, the gospel can too often become a circus.
We prayed for some of the needs among us before we parted. We decided to meet again on Tuesday evening, June 2, to continue the conversation.
That we may be one,
Steve
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