Moving in 65 Directions Simultaneously

Is it possible for a group of people to move in 65 directions at once? First Baptist does it every day, and we're quite good at it. We're organized about it, but we have no plan for it. We know it happens, and this scattering actually makes us who we are.

Before I explain how and why, you might recall that Jesus assumed that the church would act like salt and light. We would go everywhere spilling and sparking ourselves into the dull and dark places of the world. The church, just by virtue of its service in the world, and its need to move out from closeted spaces, simply adds zest and color to God's space.

The First Baptist version of salt and light cranks up the engines, waits at the bus stop, and opens car doors every day to do precisely that. Our church moves simultaneously in over 65 directions each morning just to go to school. Michael McEntyre and Susan Tatum have recently updated their information about the students who attend church here on Sunday morning. What we do on Monday, however, is quite fascinating. With no plan from headquarters, we move out in an organized orderly fashion to over 65 campuses as students and educators. We attend 20 high schools, 20 middle schools, and 25 preschool and elementary schools throughout East Tennessee. We are Smoky Bears and Bulldogs, Rebels (both kinds) and Spartans, Private-, Home-, Public-, and Pre-Schoolers of all stripes.

Educators and students scatter across this corner of the world, and we do one thing. We live the church. And that's exactly how Jesus planned it.

Partnering, Collaborating, and other Ways of Doing Church Across the Street

The ecumenical impulse has never been stronger. The mechanisms, however, have never been more frail. The moment a person joins a church, particularity breeds togetherness. We want to say, "We are not alone," and yet we have programs and benchmarks for our fellowship. With multiple churches, ministries, associations, networks, fellowships, and conclaves competing for theological airspace, how do churches work together to demonstrate how Psalm 133 works: for people to dwell together in unity.

Three sprouts of partnership have blossomed over the last few months here at First Baptist. Most of you saw the first. We loved reuniting in September with our daughter church Mt. Zion Baptist. After the concert was finished, some people had enough freedom and humility to admit, "I didn't know they were once part of us." Togetherness does more than make you feel good; it offers an education in heritage.

Michael McEntyre has forged a partnership called Merge. Here 20 churches (Baptists and otherwise) work together to offer a youth retreat called DiscipleNow in the Spring. It seems that 1,500 or youth worshiping together work better than 50. But they also brought us Parent Merge, where newbies like me could prepare for the adolescent years ahead. At my table were experts like Ron Holcomb and Jim Decker to assure me that they were still learning as well. Parents across churches share the same concerns.

Throughout the summer, the Methodists invaded our building. While our Church Street neighbors renovated their kitchen, their homeless ministry worked with Herman Weaver and his staff to offer a lunch here. They did not want to let improvements shut down ministry during the hot summer. Church Street's minister Andy Ferguson gave us high praise for our hospitality on their television broadcast. We were happy to work with them and pleased to share the space and grace.

Last, six new churches have begun KidsHope programs at area elementary schools. With the work of Carol McEntyre and our Buckner partnership, more students will have mentors through Christ's love.

We might not see this kind of togetherness around a hymnal, baptismal, or communion table. But we surely sense this growth in the places that matter most: united around human needs.

Giving a Ride and Other Small Parts of Church Work

Church can be described as lots of big events. We run from retreats, to Advent, to Easter, from Sunday to Sunday. You can plot the movement of God on a calendar if you want.

Church, however, is really plenty of litle moments. Small, behind the scenes gestures of intetionality that make the big events possible, feasible, and do-able. Because church is about people caring for others in relationships as a community of love, the buildings and events are just signposts pointing to people working or collection points where people work.

For example, look at the process of getting two people to church. These two have driven themselves for years. They love the church; they would do anything for the church. Because of physical and mental limitations they can't make it as frequently as they want. Neither asked for help; both gladly received the help when offered.

A team of intentional church people with eyes to see the need took care of the problem. Behind the scenes, Bob and Lorain Child, Bill and Betty Coley, Jo Cochran, Ed and Christine Dexter, Andy and Wanda Edmondson, Bill and Susan Higdon, Gerry Jack, Ray and Arleen Malcolm, and Jeff Sharp, work to get these two church members to church. They noticed that they were struggling. They made space in their schedules. They rearranged family lunches and post-church plans. They coordinated with family members, and they did the legwork of making sure bases were covered so that just two people could share fellowship with the gathered church. My guess is that there are many others doing this for other people each Sunday.

Little things do mean a lot; and lots of little things require intentionality and follow through in ways that a church rarely sees on the platform.

Keeping the Big Picture in Mind

Today marks the end of what I refer to as the "Silly Season." The two weeks when school begins are filled with more churchwide events than Advent. Excitement abounds, and the "Fall" begins with a flurry. From the big picture perspective, we've caught a glimpse of First Baptist life, what church people are doing to transform and engage the city, and marked celebration points along the journey here.

Here are some of the groups FBC people connected with over the last two weeks.

College students
August 18- Progressive dinner with college students
August 27- Maplehurst Park Block party
August 29- Dedication of Baptist Collegiate Ministry

Downtown Business Community
August 19, 26- Bridge Luncheon @ noon

African-American Community
August 22- History Walk
August 23- Joint Concert with Mt. Zion Baptist

Each Other in the 1B Family
August 20- Deacon and Spouse Picnic
August 27- Golden Notes Picnic and Dave Ward's 80th Birthday Party
August 30- Church Picnic

Parents of Teenagers from Area Churches
August 22- Merge Parent Conference

Families
August 26- Fall Kickoff for Music and Missions
August 28- Movie Night

What does this mean? We've had a busy couple of weeks. We also have a great group of staff and volunteers. Behind the scenes on all these projects are two guys that seem to show up at more events than the staff: Herman Weaver and Jim Snell. They cook, set up, tear down, rearrange, and coordinate schedules for kitchen and building staff. They keep the 3-ring circus of events flowing smoothly. We have not had the kind of compatiblity between kitchen and building crews in a long time. One of the other is usually great. But rarely doe we have two who complement one another so well.

Created for Each Other

We were made for each other. This place we called First Baptist is the
fulfillment locally of the dream announced in Genesis 1, a community
living out God's creative work together. Our church completes the
mission announced to the Israelites: to be a light for the nations. The
folks at 1B demonstrate through our lives what Jesus commissioned: "Go
ye therefore and disciple." According to 1 John, by the way we conduct
ourselves with each other, we show what Christ's sacrifice looks like.

As Stanley Hauerwas suggests, the most important thing the world needs
from us right now politically, socially, spiritually, economically,
and relationally is to be this kind of church. In modern terms, that
means more than becoming a member of a church. Culturally, the word
"member" sounds more like a fraternity rush or a civic obligation
renewable because the group provides a service to us or is a good
cause to join. The Christian notion of membership, however, suggests a
lifestyle change. I am using this term as Wendell Berry does when
referring to the Port William community's membership. We are the kind
of people who "member (as a verb) one another, that when we're
together or apart, we take a piece of each other with us. The
difference is not between who is a member who and who isn't but who
knows it and who doesn't."

This month, through the lens of 1 John, I'm asking us to renew our
membership vows we made to God and to one another. Community life in
Christ is so different than the paths we were on that we need the
review occasionally. Baptists are good at backsliding into the old
habits of life before joining a community. We fall back into the
patterns of individualism, family life, club membership, self-help
books, friendliness, and random acts of kindness. All of these are
important, but none of them represent the church.

First Baptist Church is a Christ-formed community of shepherds who
move from saved individuals into a community of the forgiven. We take
all of our family ties and learn to grandparent one another in the
faith. We shirk off the self-help advice of bestsellers and engage the
culture with the mind of Christ. We move past friendliness into a
radical hospitality that shapes us as apprentices in love. We allow
the spirit to take our random acts of kindness and form us into a
vibrant community together.

None of this sounds very easy to do, but that's precisely why these
times ask us to thing differently about the commitments we have made
to each other. We were made for such a time as this.

Loving the Church

Christians can't understand the life of Jesus without the church. The church can't understand Jesus without living out the Christ life to and for one another.

As people of First Baptist, Knoxville, I am asking each person to commit to a new kind of membership in the church. You won't find these commitments on the "new member" card when you join. These are the steps members take to and for one another as they grow in their understanding of Christ and their commitments to First Baptist. These commitments are an expression of love that we have for one another as reflected in the book of 1 John. Each step comes with a place where we are now to a place where we are going.

1.) From saved individuals to a community of the forgiven
1 John 1:9-2:2

2.) From multiple generations to grandparents and grandchildren in love.
1 John 2:7-17

3.) From members in a group to owners of a community
1 John 3:16-20

4.) From good advice to engaging the culture
1 John 4:1-6

5.) From friendliness to apprenticeship
1 John 4:7-21

6.) From random acts of kindness to the spirit-formed community
1 John 5:1-12

Funeral Etiquette

Respecting grief
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Originally published in the Knoxville News-Sentinel
Funerals bring out the best and worst in people. I have heard some of the strangest things spoken to the grieving. These statements are the most important things not to say at the funeral home.

The bereaved do not want to hear, "He lived long enough. It was time for him to go." "He would not want you to grieve like this." "I'm glad they died when they did. It could have been much worse."

A parent who has lost a child does not need to hear, "Be glad you had him for as long as you did." "Now he's God's little angel." "This must have been God's will." "God took him from us." "You can have another child." "Be glad you have the sibling."

The casket is not the venue to comment, "It must have been his time to go." "He looks so natural." "She doesn't look like herself." "They really did a good job on him."

Children who have lost parents should not be told, "She's not dead. She's just really asleep." "Now you have to be the man of the house."

When people try to have something to say, often their remarks about timing, theology, appearances and reality are better left unspoken. The grieving will tell you that the time of death is never good. No one dies at the right time or lives long enough.

"God" statements do not help either. They should be reserved for counselors and experts. The receiving line is not the time to become a theologian. Parents who have lost children or suffered a miscarriage do not need platitudes.

Even though another sibling might still be around, their presence does not replace a life lost. Children facing the reality of death are not comforted by denial of its existence. Their pain is only made worse by telling a child a dead person is sleeping or presuming that a child can mature rapidly.

A friend, however, can offer comfort during the process of grief when a comforter anticipates the needs of the individual. Every death is unique, and each experience of grief is like a snowflake.

Place yourself in the shoes of the grieving. Give them permission to say anything she wants to say. Hurting family members, like customers, are right every time. They might even say the things listed above as they work through their own questions. The best response from a friend is to speak with your ears, eyes, hands and heart. Listen.

Validate what the loved one has done for the dying person. Affirm how they cared, worked and persevered. Those standing in the receiving line usually experience a rush of adrenaline that bottles public displays of grief. Do not evaluate or assume someone is in denial if their public grief seems different than yours.

Ask open-ended questions that demonstrate the voice of experience without saying, "I know how you feel." Friends can meet common practical needs in the process of grief. Eating, resting, storytelling, praying and remembering work together. Ask, "When can I bring you a meal?" "How can I pray for you?" "How are your children handling this?" "How are you doing today?"

The funeral home is the place to pay attention and plan the process of comfort. The real journey through grief begins following the cemetery. Make note of anniversaries, birthdays and significant moments. A card, a phone call and a pre-planned lunch go a long way down the road. Through these actions, you are saying the words a grieving person needs the most: "I am here for you." At the funeral, you can offer the best gift you have - your presence.

Dr. William D. Shiell is the senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Knoxville and author of two books. His e-mail address is shiell@fbcknox.org.

Wedding Rehearsal

In Matthew 22:1-14, Jesus said the kingdom of heaven is like a wedding for God’s Son. God has invited people to join him at the wedding feast of his Son Jesus Christ. Who would refuse an invitation like that? Surprisingly, the first ones invited did. God sent his servants to ask even more to come. By implication, Jewish people were the first two groups to receive invitations and Gentiles the third. Another surprise awaited.


Jesus indicated that accepting an invitation, knowing the groom as a “friend” (22:12-13), and attending the wedding are not enough. One must be clothed correctly, or prepared through one’s obedient living, in order to enter the feast (Garland, Reading Matthew, 225).



The customs of an ancient wedding banquet are analogous to the modern wedding rehearsal and dinner. Even though our weddings do not last for a week, we rehearse the parts, prepare for the event, and feast together the night before the big day. In a rehearsal, the coordinator positions the attendants, practices the processional, coordinates the instrumentalists, and prepares for the big day. As the rehearsal goes, often so does the wedding itself. In the same way, believers prepare for the wedding of Christ to the church each time we gather for worship and serve others. The bridegroom (Christ) has invited all people to come to his celebration. The guest list is open-ended; he has sent people to invite everyone because most of the first invitees refused to come.


When we gather in a church, the service functions like the wedding rehearsal. When we worship, serve, and study, we are learning our parts. We learn how to be obedient. We learn more about the groom and discover the others in the wedding party. We meet the other members of the family who are also on the bride’s side. We study the groom’s story (the Bible). We serve in other ways, too. We visit people in nursing homes, homeless shelters, hospitals, and prisons
who wish they could attend the rehearsal.


The problem, however, is that most people are too busy to come for the rehearsal. They are busy getting ready for other things. They are either at the office working extra time on Sunday morning, going to the ball game, golfing another eighteen holes, or simply staying at home. In essence, many refuse the invitation. It’s their choice. And it is none of our business to worry about their choices. Most of their decisions come naturally to them, and they would not think otherwise.


God says that in order to come to the wedding, though, we must accept the invitation and be prepared when we arrive. According to the parable, some who attend the rehearsal (called
“friend,” 22:12-13) will not be at the wedding, just as there are plenty at church who are not fully prepared for the end.


To be prepared, we need the right garments. The clothes are not a description of the required attire for a worship service. They are the symbols of obedience. Righteousness is clothing for the feast. It’s not merely enough to accept the invitation; we must live appropriately
as well.



(A selection from Sessions with Matthew available now from Smyth and Helwys.)