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Category: Catalyst (Page 12 of 30)

A catalyst is one that sparks something. The catalyst speaks from experience and enables others to move forward more freely. These articles are written to act as a catalyst in your life.

Why Are They Fighting

October 12, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Unless you’re living under a rock, you’ve heard that there is yet another conflict in the Middle East. However, this one isn’t your normal everyone is angry with everyone kind of conflict. This one has elevated to a horrific state of war. And I’ll be the first to admit that no one benefits from war. I’m not saying that as a knock on military or country by any means. As a matter of fact I’m a huge advocate and supporter of our military! It’s just the sad reality that war brings death and destruction. These aren’t part of God’s design for us but sometimes are necessary to fulfill an overall end goal.

Now why does this war matter? What is it about? What is it not?

There are a ton of war mongers out there who are spewing all sorts of things about this being the end the world. Or this has to happen for Jesus to come back. Or it was all staged. Or any number of things. But I’m not sure we really get the gravity of this whole situation until we step back a bit.

Now I’m not going to get all political with you. This isn’t about who’s right or who’s wrong. Although I do have my own very strong personal opinions about that. My purpose here is why do they fight, and why does it matter.

Ok so who are these two groups: Israel and Hamas. Strictly speaking Hamas is a Palestinian group that has taken their beliefs to an extreme position. Every country, every political party even has some who are extreme in their beliefs and often in their actions. Some call them extremists others radicals but we can see from the manner in which they operate that they function much like what we have come to know as a terror cell. Striking in civilian rich places with no warning and an intent to cripple, harm, and kill anyone and everyone who is not like them. Add to it the women and children that have been tortured and things get really disgusting really quickly. It’s terror on many levels.

Now not all Palestinians are part of Hamas. Like I said it’s an extreme group of them. However there is a pretty decent amount of sympathy toward even the most extreme parts by the rest of the group. It’s what’s meant by the statement the enemy of my enemy is my friend. While they don’t agree with the actions of the extreme group, they dislike the other side even more. But who are the other side?

Have you ever heard the biblical story of Jacob and Esau and the bowl of stew and the birthright and the promise and the legacy? It’s a story in the Old Testament book of Genesis. Esau was the older twin who was hungry. Jacob, the younger brother, was a great cook. Short version of the story is that Jacob made some delicious lunch and Esau was so hungry he was willing to trade his birthright for that bowl of soup. Yikes! That must have been some hunger! Later Jacob would deceive their father and outright steal a blessing that was intended for Esau. So there’s been some hatred and animosity between them pretty much since their birth.

Jacob would later be come to known as Israel. And from Esau would be a lineage that would forever be angry with his brother. Remember the soup? This group is what we have in large part as the Palestinian people. Please know I’m painting with large brush strokes here because there is more to the history but I’m giving a simple overview here.

All this to say, the fighting isn’t new. Actually it’s been going on for thousands of years. Some years it’s full blown atrocity like we’re seeing now. Other days it’s angry yelling across a border wall. But even in times of peace it isn’t the whole shake hands and be best friends kind of peace we want. It’s mind your own business and I’ll mind mine kind of peace. We’ll disagree and the only agreement is that we hate each other kind of peace.

Now that we have a quick biblical framework for who these people are and some idea of why they’re fighting, why does this matter today? Well some are taking this conflict and saying that since this is a biblical fight then it must be explained later in the bible as a sign of the end of the world. Caution – let’s not get ahead of ourselves!

Remember how I said this was a conflict lasting thousands of years? Yeah then why would today be the golden moment that indicates it’s all over? The Gaza region has been a point of contention for them for as long as they both had land. This is not new! There’s talk about a third temple being built but that isn’t happening this weekend. Actually, it’s been talked about since shortly after the last temple fell, which was over 1900 years ago! They’ve planned, prayed for, and talked about this happening for nearly every one of those 1900 years. And here we are with no foundation poured. The land hasn’t been graded down. The lumber hasn’t been gathered. The supplies have not been calculated and purchased.

So I’d like to caution us to go a little slower with the whole end of the world motif. There are numerous people who’ve calculated the end of the world based on earthly happenings. Y2K anyone? And how has that worked out for us…Since we’re still here it hasn’t happened. The Bible tells us that no one knows the day or hour of the end. But we should be ready all the time.

Look what’s happening over there and in various places around the world is not good. Killing innocent people is not good. War in and of itself is not what God intended for us. I don’t want to say it’s a necessary evil of the world but we do know that the sword has been given to keep peace and order. That means, as ugly as war is there are times when the muscle of power has to be flexed to keep evil at bay.

So the long and short is this is a territorial war over land that is built on hardships and disagreements for centuries! There’s a lot of hatred that can mount up in that length of time. What are we to do about it? Pray! Really it’s the one thing we need right now. For those of us who have family moving into that region to try to restore peace and to help innocent people get to safety, pray! For the men and women defending the innocent and rooting out evils, pray! For your loved ones near and far, pray! For you family and friends, pray! For you enemies and people you’ve never met, pray!

When evil rears its ugly head, all it desires is to turn us against one another. You can’t be against people if you’re praying for them. So get to it people! Pray for peace not just in Israel and Gaza but around the world and even in your own heart.

Character > Competency

October 4, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Imagine that you have a job that really needs done. I mean really needs done. You have a deadline that is rapidly approaching. And your back is against the wall to get this thing completed. These are the scenarios when we are more likely to make a really bad decision, so here’s your caution.

The greater the emergency we face the more likely we are to choose someone for what they can do, not for who they are. Let that sink in for a second. It’s super easy to choose someone for their competency and capacity and ignore their character and integrity.

Character trumps competency any day of the week!

There’s a saying in leadership that goes something along the lines of you can never out lead your character. Man is that true or what! Have you ever seen this? Someone has all the right stuff to get the job done, but they’re a real selfish jerk. You do know that won’t end well right?

I remember when I was a car salesman. We had a great team, for the most part. There was that one sales person however that was really good at what they did, but they had some spots on their character that were pretty questionable. Now questionable character isn’t about being a good vs bad person. It’s about being immoral and selfish vs a kind team player. No matter how many cars this person sold, no one wanted to be around them. And they had fewer repeat and referral customers because this person was obviously in it for themselves and thought waaaay too much of themselves!

Character trumps competency any day of the week.

So when it comes to hiring or staffing for the next job or bringing on volunteers to help with that thing your nonprofit is doing, take a few extra minutes to look beyond a person’s capacity. Ask a few character questions to make sure they don’t burn the organization to the ground while they’re getting the job done.

Here are some of the quick character questions I use.

  • How well do I really know this person?
  • What do their friends/family say about them?
  • What are they really good at doing?
  • What are they really bad at doing?
  • Ask the person when’s the last time they failed, and how they reacted. This is less about competency and achievement. The purpose here is to determine if they are willing to admit mistakes and how well they recover from those mistakes. These are character issues.
  • What one word do others use to describe this person?

There are a ton more questions you can ask. I’d love to hear what character questions you find helpful in this process. By the way, these questions are good questions to use on yourself as well. Your character matters too!

The Same Team

October 3, 2023 / / 0 Comments

I’m a pretty big sports fan. I love college football. As a matter of fact I will do just about everything in my power to rearrange my life for 14 Saturdays a year just so I can watch what in my opinion is the best sport around. Now you don’t have to agree with me. But it’s not going to change my mind.

I really think we can learn a little from the sport of football. Life lessons. Business approaches. Relationship learnings. And I really think the church can take a lesson or two from the game of football as well.

It really hit me the other day when I was looking at the sideline. Why was the coach on the sidelines wearing that bright green shirt? Then another coach for the same team was wearing a bright blue one. These are not their colors. What’s the deal? Why not wear apparel for the team you’re coaching?!?! It seemed really absurd to me. Until I realized who they were and what role they had. Then it started to make a lot more sense!

You see one of the coaches on the sideline was one of the defensive coaches. He was letting the defense know how they should be lining up based on what the offense was showing. The one in blue? Yeah he had a different function. Not defense but his position on the team related to the offense.

They had to stand out so the men on the field could see them easily enough in the moment. They were on the same team, but they had different methods for achieving the same goal. They both wanted the team to win. They both wanted their team to score more points than the other team. One dealt with a really strong offensive strategy. For them it was all about scoring points. The defense however wasn’t as focused on scoring points. They just didn’t want the other team to score. While their tactics were different their end goal was the same.

Then it hit me. It’s the same way in the church. It’s not about offense and defense but different approaches to accomplish the same goal. What’s the goal of the church? According to the Bible the goal of the church should be to equip the saints for works of ministry and to disciple people through relationships built around God’s promises (baptism) and His commands (obedience).

Nothing in that tells us what color shirt to wear. As a matter of fact there is a ton of flexibility in developing relationships leading to discipleship. And just as much freedom in equipping the saints. As long as the end goal is the same – eternal life in Jesus. It’s about believing and living out the belief that Jesus is the only way to heaven.

He doesn’t tell us to wear special clothes when we preach or teach. He doesn’t tell us what songs are better than others. He doesn’t have a preferred musical styling. It’s almost like Jesus knew that one day we’d have a full team standing ready on the sidelines. It’s almost like Jesus had some kind of knowledge that helped him realize we don’t all learn the same way.

As big of a football fan as I am, I am a much larger fan of Jesus and the way he describes his church in the Bible. I’m not really a huge fan of how the church functions in the world all of the time today however. I’ve been on the receiving end of comments saying you’re not a real pastor because you don’t wear a robe. Or others have told me you’re not really teaching the Bible if your church is growing that fast. You mean that teaching the Bible is a deterrent for growing the local church?! Yikes! Pretty sure someone needs to read the bible a bit!

Look, I know that one size doesn’t fit all. And that’s the beauty of the church. Some of us are wearing the blue shirts of the offensive line coach. While others feel more comfortable in the stylings of the defending the ways we’ve done it approach. Both offense and defense are necessary for a football game! What’s it going to take for us to get this through our thick skulls?

It’s like this – Jesus is the only way to heaven. But my blue shirt or your green shirt are not the only way to Jesus. We’re on the same team, so for the sake of everything holy let’s act like it!

Respond Don’t React

September 27, 2023 / / 0 Comments

There’s a little known secret about me that is soon to not be so little known. I can’t stand it when someone slaps my back. Partially because it’s not the nicest feeling thing in the world and second because it triggers a reaction in my brain that isn’t healthy. You see when someone slaps my back (even as a nice gesture if that’s even possible) it makes my defense mechanisms of fight go into high alert.

It’s like a multi alarm fire going off in my brain. Someone slaps my back and then my body tenses up and all of the endorphins start moving around. My blood pressure rises. My face gets a little red and my muscles tighten up. Inherently my hands clench into fists and I have to put all of my energy into NOT letting my arms come out swinging.

I know it’s an overreaction. I know it’s not good, healthy, or even warranted. But it’s the reality. So please after reading this don’t be the person that tries it out. Just don’t be that person. Please.

I tell this little story because I want you to see how bad reactions can be. Sure some reactions can be good – lay my hand on a hot surface and my reaction is to remove it quickly. Not all reactions are bad but some are very bad and very destructive. Those are the reactions to which I’m referring in this post.

Do you know your back slap kind of reaction triggers? Maybe it’s a word someone says or a type of comment? Something the just triggers a massive fight or flight reaction from you.

The difference between a reaction and a response is time. That’s really all it is. A little bit of time separating their initial action and your way of answering back. If you answer quickly, chances are you’re on the fast track to a reaction. But if you allow the action to simmer for even a second or two, you are more likely to come back with a response that isn’t so harsh and punching someone because they slap your back.

I’ve had this happen in my life far too many times. Someone says something and my gut reaction is to talk. I react. And it rarely is helpful, beneficial or godly. And often a reaction will cause hurt, brokenness, and division in ways we could never predict.

In the heat of the moment it’s just not the right time to find your comeback. Think about it for a minute. Have a good thought out approach that is more likely to win the day than lashing out with your gut reaction.

I know some of you are probably saying hypocrite much. Look I already told you I’m not perfect at this thing. Just because I know the right way to handle things doesn’t mean that I do it right all the time (or even most of the time).

It’s really simple but simple doesn’t mean easy. Simple in that there are two really critical steps but hard because we’ve gotten so used to reacting that stopping to think isn’t our first choice.

The two simple steps are to know your triggers and create a better response. I know way too simple but it’s just that simple. Do you know your backslap moments? If so, what are some ways you can flip the script your brain tells you and instead of tensing up and wanting to pummel someone take a different approach?

Reactions are good in some scenarios. But know when a reaction is warranted and when a response is more appropriate. And don’t slap my back. It won’t end well for either of us.

Power of Habits

September 26, 2023 / / 0 Comments

I’ve been back on a kick of listening to podcasts and books on my drives to the gym and work. One of the concepts that came out of my drive time listening this past week was about the power of habits. This isn’t like some power of positive thinking or self help kind of deal. But the consistency of doing small things well as part of a regular regimen. Really the goal is to build momentum.

Momentum is a powerful asset in life but you can’t have momentum without the small steps getting started.

All too often we tend to look at a lofty goal and want to achieve it. We tend to think as long as there’s a goal, we should be able to just push hard enough and get it done. But that’s not really the way things work.

Think of a big goal or vision statement as a ladder. The end result is the top rung of the ladder. We’d never grab a 30 foot ladder and just jump to the top step. It doesn’t work that way. We need to find the lower rungs to help us get started. Each rung on the ladder is another step toward the top. Each one helps us build momentum to get closer to that final goal of reaching the top.

The same is true for some of the goals we make in our daily lives. Often it’s not about the top rung of the ladder. The greatest differences can often be made on the short, seemingly small steps taken one after another to get there.

Ok so here’s a real life example. Many people have a goal to lose a few pounds after the first of the year. We’ve packed on some holiday blubber and want to lose a bit of it so our pants fit better. We buy a gym membership and new gym clothes. We pick up a new water bottle because this is the year we’re going to drink a gallon of water a day. We get all the right things and set the goal of dropping 25 pounds. But how often does it actually happen?

The problem is we miss the small rungs on the ladder. Sure getting the workout gear and the gym membership are helpful but we haven’t created a habit yet. We haven’t set the daily steps we’re going to take to get there. What if we set alarms on our phone to tell us when to get up and walk throughout the day? What about getting one of those apps that reminds us to drink a glass of water now please? Those are steps in the right direction as well.

But a habit isn’t about ideals or intentions. Habits are about actions. Consistent actions taken over time. This is what a habit is all about. This means that when the alarm goes off earlier than you like to wake up, you still get up. You find someone to hold you accountable to being at the gym. Because we all know letting someone down is harder than just not showing up yourself. Every day we take these small steps to create a habit that one day will do more than help you lose 25 pounds. It becomes a lifestyle where those 25 pounds come off and muscle is formed in their place.

The same can be said for most anything. It’s about the small steps we need to take regularly to get us to the intended destination. Habits are powerful but a word of caution. They can easily be derailed if we don’t keep ourselves accountable. As hard as it is to establish a habit, unfortunately it’s super easy to fall out of it. This is where we have to be intentional about each and every step along the path to that top rung of the ladder.

To sum it all up, habits help but habits are more than thoughts. They’re actions done repeatedly over time. They eventually become part of who we are. What habit do you need to start today to get you where you’re going?

What Don’t You Know?

September 20, 2023 / / 0 Comments

There’s an old saying you don’t know what you don’t know. And man is that ever true! I have to be honest there are likely more things that I miss in life than I even realize because I take so many things for granted!

Today I was setting out some logo apparel at the church I serve. Super nice gear if I do say so myself! But if it had been up to me, this never would have happened. I kind of got in a rut with the logo wear for church. It all kind of looked the same. Simple logo on the left chest. Short sleeve polo shirt. Maybe a zip up fleece but that’s about it.

One day a young lady at church pretty much told me I didn’t know what people really wanted. And I could not be happier! I have to say her eye was exactly what was needed. While I was a bit shocked when she said something, I couldn’t be happier that she did.

I got so close to the same old design stuff that I didn’t even realize that it wasn’t something that was of any interest to anyone other than me! I didn’t know what I didn’t know. But am I ever glad that I was able to hear this one!

What don’t you know? A good practice in life is to gather feedback from those around you about what they see and how they’re experiencing things. It’s super easy to get so wrapped up in life that you miss the trees for the sake of the forest.

It’s good to surround yourself with people whose opinions you value. There are three types of people I find helpful to have on a sounding board kind of team.

People beyond you. These are the people who’ve been there, done that. They can speak from experience. They can tell you what worked or didn’t work for them and even better why it did/didn’t worked. Regularly check with these one or two people you value to tell them what they see in you. This might be hard and it takes some vulnerability but it’s super essential!

People beside you. These are colleagues and friends, sometimes family as well. They are the ones who interact with you on a regular basis. Really important here, these are not direct reports. These are peers and people who spend a great deal of time walking alongside you. They know your habits and can spot when something is a bit off. They can often tell when you’re not acting like yourself, even when you can’t even tell it!

People behind you. These are the direct report kind of evaluations. These people see how you interact and often are the recipients of your off days more than anyone else. They can sense when you are not focusing on what matters or when you’re really in the zone. These types of conversations might be hard at first but in time you can build the relationship where they feel comfortable to honestly tell you what you’re not seeing.

You don’t know what you don’t know, so ask a bunch of questions. Invite feedback from people whose opinion you’ll actually listen to! And then listen to it. Adjust when you need to adjust. Give away permission and authority where you need to give it away. And you never know, you might end up with a pretty well designed hoodie out of it!

The Good Life of Horror

September 11, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Many will never know but others will never forget. Many will only see pictures while others have the images branded in their minds for all of time. There is a generation being raised that know very little about the evil that lurks in plain sight. But others can’t get rid of the emotions.

Today many will pause to remember the events of September 11, 2001. The world kind of stopped that day for many of us. Classes canceled. Flights grounded. Police and military were everywhere and NO ONE had a problem with it. First responders were loved and admired. Service men and women were held in high esteem. Race. Creed. Color. Gender. Political persuasion didn’t matter. We were one people. One nation. One nation on her knees.

Then we stood. Like we always do. We dug deep. Found our resolve and placed our feet on the solid ground of our ancestors. We leaned forward in a fighting stance and raised our arms with fists clenched. We weren’t going to take this one laying down. We had to do something. Anything. Nothing was not an option.

But what has happened as the images of the horror faded has been disheartening yet predictable. Even though we said we’d never forget. Even though we add special banners to our social media for this 24 hour day. Even though we light the sky and fly the flags and even pause for a few seconds that day to remember, I’m not convince that we don’t really remember.

If we remembered, I mean really remembered, then things would be different. We’d have that same respect for local authorities we had on September 12th. If we remembered, we’d be able to see beyond color and gender and side of the aisle. If we really remembered the world would be a different place.

Sometimes it’s good to have a moment of horror hit. Sometimes it can be good to suffer the fear and heartache we suffered that late summer day. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. I don’t ever want to feel the emptiness of that moment again, but I sure wouldn’t mind to live the good life of horror again. That was a day I could live over and over again.

The Necessity Of The Hunter

September 7, 2023 / / 1 Comment

Yellowstone National Park is a beautiful place. My family took our last long vacation out to Yellowstone and the surrounding area. We absolutely loved everything about it. The scenery was amazing. There was wildlife everywhere. The trees were huge and fields filled with green grasses and other natural elements. The rivers were beautifully bubbling streams of sparkling water. But it didn’t always used to be that way.

In the early 1990s things in the park didn’t look quite like this. The elk had nearly overpopulated the park. The grass was more sparse. The trees were stripped of bark. The rivers and streams weren’t as clean. All of it because there were too many elk populating the park. But why were there so many elk? Good question! I’m glad you asked.

It all started in the late 1800s and early 1900s when it was open season on the gray wolf. By the end of the 1920s the gray wolf was eradicated from the park altogether. Some thought this was going to be helpful. From not having to worry about visitors to the park region being attacked by a wolf to giving some freedom for the elk to run free, getting rid of the wolf seemed the right thing to do at the time. But little did they know at the time, removing the hunter from the park would have drastic effects on the entire ecosystem of Yellowstone.

Then in 1995 a truck carrying eight gray wolves came into the park and released a controlled population back into the system. What followed could only be hoped for…the park returned to a thriving ecosystem. It turns out hunter are necessary for a thriving system. Predators, while doing bad things in the eyes of some, are necessary to create an atmosphere where all can thrive.

This truth transfers beyond wolves in a national park. As a matter of fact, I think in our lives in general we need predators. We need those people who contradict us and challenge us. Those who seemingly are out to get us because they keep us on our toes.

Just like bringing the wolves back to Yellowstone balanced the ecosystem and brought the elk population back in check which made the rivers run cleaner – so also having some of these challenges in our lives brings our lives back on track as well.

We like to eliminate the problems and run from adversity, but perhaps we should embrace some of the challenges in life a little more intentionally. Perhaps we should give thanks for the circumstances in our lives that make us more alert. Paul tells us to rejoice in all things and to even have joy in our trials. This is very likely the reason why.

In the church we like to complain when things don’t go right, when the government oversteps a line, when we feel like being a Christian is hard. But living a life without challenges is a lot like Yellowstone without wolves. We become complacent and think the world owes us something. We dry up and start caring less about the world around us. Eventually the streams of life get all muddy with troubles of the world and we forget what’s most important.

I’ve heard so many lately say that it’s getting harder and harder to be a pastor in the world. Oddly enough Jesus never told us it would be easy. As a matter of fact if it is easy, I tend to believe that we’re probably not doing something right. Jesus told us that we’ll have struggles in this life. He said the world will try to do to his followers what they did to him. Sure sounds like we should be expecting trouble of some sort doesn’t it?

Look. I know it’s no fun being pursued by wolves. I’ve been in my fair share of situations where someone has thought I was prey. But when we have friendships where people turn on us, jobs where coworkers don’t like us, scenarios where we’re not fully embraced – those moments shape us into who we’re supposed to be.

My advice. Don’t necessarily pray for wolves to surround you. But I would thank God for the times when you are pursued by a predator because predators aren’t always evil. Sometimes predators are necessary to help you live a more alert, focused, and dynamic life.

Is This Burnout?

August 18, 2023 / / 0 Comments

There is a huge epidemic floating around the world right now that has people burning out in their jobs and lives. But is burn out really burn out? Or is it something else?

I recently listened to a man who is very much in tune with the mental well being of people today. And he draws an interesting distinction between burn out and something he calls stress out. To be honest, I’ve never heard of stress out before but his explanation got me thinking a bit.

Burn out for most people is when they just feel tired and unable to push through something. It’s like everything in life has them down. But burnout is actually deeper than that. Burnout squashes a person’s soul. It makes them stoic. Emotionless. They don’t have the capacity for caring anymore. They are carrying a weight that has them buckling at the knees constantly.

Please note it’s not that a person in burnout doesn’t care. It’s that they are unable to care. They do not have the ability to care. They might want to care but they just simply can’t. Their heart has grown numb. Their mental and emotional self has been so burned by the stresses of life that they just can’t feel anymore.

Burnout is the constant feeling of failure which has broken a person’s ability to engage emotionally in the tasks in front of them. Burnout is very real and it can be very dangerous. The best way to handle a situation where burnout is likely is to have very clear expectations. Remember, burnout has to do with feeling like a failure at nearly everything. Clarifying expectations makes burnout a less likely outcome. If you’re in a scenario where there are not clear expectations, do yourself a favor and find a way to clarify what’s expected of you to keep you from burning out. Burnout leads someone to feel not like they failed at something but like they are a failure.

But there’s another side to this. Not everyone who feels pulled in too many directions, like a failure and just plain exhausted is actually in burnout. This speaker called it stress out. The idea of carrying too much stress is that you can’t keep up. You’re running too many things at the same time. Your role exceeds your character. Living with too much stress is dangerous.

Stress in and of itself is not a bad thing. Actually there is level of stress that can be healthy. Healthy stress forces us to be and do things we otherwise would never be and do. But too much stress for too long can be dangerous. As a matter of fact, too much stress carried for too long leads a person to lead a frenzied life that never slows down. The longer we carry high levels of stress the higher the levels of cortisol in our body. Extremely elevated levels of cortisol can lead to major health concerns. Everything from blood sugar problems to heart trouble to weight gain to massive agitation and mood swings are all a result of elevated levels of cortisol in the body.

Stress can be a dangerous animal when it comes to our overall health and well being. But severe stress is not the same as burnout. While burnout makes us unable to care, elevated stress for long periods of time can cause us to care too much about things we normally wouldn’t think matter. Stress out tends to trigger snap reactions in life.

A person living in a stress filled environment will be unable to manage change or handle simple questions. Changes, no matter how small, are seen as another weight added to their life. While questions are seen as complete challenges to their authority.

If you’re struggling with burnout or stress, it’s critically important to find someone to help. Find someone to talk to. Talk to a friend or colleague. See a therapist. Seek help from a counselor. These are not signs of weakness! They are the most important things you can do to protect your mental, emotional, relational and spiritual well being. (It can even protect your physical well being too!)

We all have different capacities for what we can handle, so please don’t compare yourself to someone else. Both of these are real. Both are dangerous if left unattended or unaddressed.

The Church And The Monkey Trap

August 10, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Have you ever seen a video of a monkey trap? I was going to put a video on here but some of you might be offended by the content so I’ll just describe it to you. You’re welcome to go search for a video online, they’re pretty easy to find.

The idea is simple. The monkey gets trapped because it sees something it wants and won’t let go. Therefore trapping its hand in a jar. Historically there are cultures that have trapped monkeys in the wild. They would take a jar or a coconut and put a hole in it large enough for the monkey to put its hand inside. Inside the jar is something the monkey wants, often rice or another food substance they just simply can’t ignore.

The monkey puts his hand into the coconut and grasps the rice only to realize that he can’t get his hand out again. Mind you, the hole did not change size. The opening is the same size it was when the monkey put his hand in. The only difference is, now the monkey’s hand is closed around the rice. The hole is just large enough for the open hand to enter but too small for the closed fist to pull out.

I really think this is what we’re seeing in the institutional, denominational churches in North America. We are the monkey in the story. We live our lives and things are going well. As we look around, we see the values of society and culture shifting around us. Sometimes shifting faster than we can even define.

Add to the scenario that we see our numbers shrinking as churches are closing, pastors retiring, men not going into the ministry – it’s a situation that causes great fear and anxiety for some people. Enter church as monkey.

If we were to define the parts of this analogy to meet our current situation, we’d see the church is represented by the monkey. The rice inside is the way we’ve always done it. Really it’s anything that has become something we just can’t loosen our grip on (aside from the proper teaching of the Bible – really that’s the only non negotiable in the mix). And the jar is the culture war surrounding the church, the crisis of leadership in the church at large.

The church has its hand in the jar because that’s where we live. We have our churches embedded in communities and neighborhoods. Our hand is in the jar. It’s hidden in that jar and somewhat safe inside there. But we’re not called to hide in that place. We are to stand out and live differently, but how do we do that when culture shifts so fast?

When we feel threatened by the cultural shift around us, we clench our fist. In this case, we grasp whatever is known and comfortable. These things are actually, in and of themselves good and historically proven. For the church body to which I belong, that thing we are grasping is historicity, traditionalism, and structure. These are the rice in the coconut that we don’t know what to do with so we just cling to it more tightly.

The problem is the church is supposed to love God and love our neighbors, but we are not able to love our neighbor if our hand is stuck in the jar. The longer we hold so tightly to the things we have in the jar, the farther away from serving the culture we move. Now before you get all honked off here don’t hear what’s not being said. I’m not saying throw out the tradition and history. That’s absurd and will actually do more harm than good!

Know when the structures of the past will work and when they won’t. Understand that structures in the life of the church can’t be a one size fits all kind of deal. Every congregation is unique in its expression of faith because every community that it serves is unique. Forcing an historic structure, no matter how good and worthwhile in its day, to a thriving modern environment at best won’t always work. And at worst will hinder the expansion of the gospel in that context.

The solution? Let go a little.

If the monkey would loosen the grip on the rice, it would be able to get its hand out of the jar. When it releases the rice, it’s still a monkey. Letting go did not change the fact that it was a monkey. It just allowed that monkey to be free. Likewise if the church would loosen its grip on some of the things to which it clings, we could be released to do more ministry in our individual contexts. It won’t stop us from being the church anymore than releasing the rice changed the monkey from being a monkey. It won’t change us from being Lutheran either. It will simply make the church more able to pivot to meet the needs of the people in and outside of the church.

Look I get it. There’s comfort in the known things. There’s something cool about the liturgy and the formal structures of things. But to say that it’s the only way it can be done is bordering on being a pharisee, you know the very people that Jesus told were white washed tombs! I surely don’t want to be considered a pretty coffin – fancy on the outside and dead on the inside.

The church is a people gathered and on mission to make disciples. How, where, when we gather are not really things the Bible addresses. More than anything I want the message of the gospel to be spread to the ends of the earth. I want to see my friends and neighbors come to know and believe in Jesus. I believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven, but I also believe that this one structure of how we do church life isn’t the only way to Jesus. It’s good and meaningful but it isn’t the only way. If we loosen up a little while clinging tightly to the truths of the Bible, we just might see the gates of hell start to fall like Jesus promises to Peter.

In short monkeys, it’s time to let go of the rice so we can get our hand out of the jar.

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