Bringing God's presence into church meetings

Did you hear about the church business meeting that ended in a fist fight in the parking lot; over the color of the new carpet? I'm not sure if that story is true but it is often told. It serves as an illustration for how volatile church meetings can be.

Understanding that church committee, board, council and business meetings are spiritual gatherings can go a long way to bringing God's presence into our deliberations. Opening and closing in prayer is a good practice but we need to move deeper than these book-end prayers. One way is to pray over each agenda item; seeking God's wisdom and clarity.

Hymns and other Christian songs can help set an appropriate atmosphere. Another form of prayer is create a litany of recent victories. After each victory is read, the people pray in unison, “We give thanks to you, our Lord.”

If the group is small and not familiar with each other, begin with someone sharing a brief (3 minute) testimony. If it is a retreat-type setting, with a longer meeting time, more people can share.

Vision casting is important element in understanding purpose. Not just the vision for the organization but, also, for the group and this particular meeting. How are we going to honor God in this meeting? How will we advance the Kingdom... the Gospel... the Great Commission? Tie the vision to scripture in a vibrant way that binds the journey of the church to God's Word.

Move beyond statistical reports to victory stories. Whose lives are being changed? Numbers have value but stories bring them to life in a way that is memorable and spurs us on to greater service and sacrifice.

Most importantly, Christians must remember who we are and whom we represent. Moderators need to be ready to pause a meeting for a time of prayer and reflective silence; perhaps, even, a hymn if a meeting becomes contentious. Angry shouting has no place in a Christian gathering.

Discernment is more than consensus and compromise and may require a bit more time. Discerning God's will is worth the wait. It's certainly better than a bad decision and much better than the bitter feelings left behind after a split vote.

God Always Wins

Michael slays the dragon. Raphael

Judges 2:20-22

God uses our enemies to accomplish His will. In Judges we learn that God would use the nations around Israel to test them. Whenever Israel fell into sin, God allowed an enemy to chastise them. When they cried out to God, they were delivered by a champion. One of those champions, Samson, was self-centered and cavorted with the women of Israel's oppressors. Yet, God used him to accomplish His will, despite Samson's lack of cooperation.

The Jews' exile to Babylon was a sad event for Israel but it put Jewish houses of worship in places where the gospel would one day be preached. The Roman empire provided safe roads and a common language (Greek) to help spread the gospel. The expulsion of the Christians from Jerusalem increased the speed at which the gospel spread.

Not all things are good but the Bible assures us that “all things work together for good for those that love God.” (Romans 8:28)

In every church you will find destructive people who have an agenda driven by something other than the gospel. These are the weeds that Jesus said the enemy sows among the wheat (Matthew 13:24-30), the goats that will one day be separated from the sheep (Matthew 25:31-46). In his book, “Well-Intentioned Dragons” Marshall Shelley writes:

“Within the church, they are often sincere, well-meaning saints, but they leave ulcers, strained relationships, and hard feelings in their wake. They don’t consider themselves difficult people. They don’t sit up nights thinking of ways to be nasty. Often they are pillars of the community – talented, strong personalities, deservingly respected – but for some reason, they undermine the ministry of the church. They are not naturally rebellious or pathological; they are loyal church members, convinced they’re serving God, but they wind up doing more harm than good.”

People wonder why bad things happen to good people and why good things happen to bad people. There is no answer to this except that God allows things to happen to accomplish his perfect will.

After Job had lost everything in a test of this faith, he declared:

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

And naked shall I return there.

The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away;

Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Job 1:21

We Can Have Peace on Earth

Luke 4:18 

Jesus Christ can bring peace into this un-peaceful world.

Alarmed by the possibility of a nuclear war, a wealthy retired couple decided to move to a remote group of islands in the Atlantic Ocean. They were large enough to provide a comfortable life but small enough to be unimportant. English rule made the government stable and the culture familiar. It was not long after they moved to the Falkland Islands that, to everyone's surprise, war erupted there.
 
We search for peace but there is no peace on earth today. Wars, terrorist attacks, rioting... peace is lacking between nations; between races; it’s lacking in homes and in hearts. It’s obvious that our world needs peace.

Many of the prophecies of the birth of Christ use the word peace.

He is the "Prince of Peace"

Zechariah says, "He will proclaim peace to the nations..." (9:10)

Micah adds, "He will be their peace" (5:4-5)

But our world has seen very little peace because it has not embraced Jesus Christ. Since the signing of the Peace of Westphalia (1648) there have been more than last 300 wars in Europe alone. There is not a single generation of Americans who have not known war. Most have known multiple wars.

Into this brawling, war-torn world, God sent His personal envoy of "peace on earth, good will toward men."

Peace is more than the mere absence of war. It has its roots in the Old Testament concept of shalom. It means wholeness, completeness, well-being, and prosperity. The lack of shalom comes from such sources as poverty, greed, the lust for power and spiritual emptiness. Into this turmoil we must bring the light of Christ by waging peace.

We wage peace when we feed the hungry, clothe the naked and befriend the lonely. (Matthew 25:44-46)

We wage peace when we stand for justice. (Isaiah 1:17) We wage peace whenever we share the love of Jesus with others. (John 13:34-35)

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, 

because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.  

He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and 

recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, 

 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” 

Luke 4:18

see also:

We Can Have Peace with God

We Can Have Peace in our Relationships

 

A Gentle Answer Turns Away Wrath

A gentle answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Proverbs 15:1

Angry words and actions find their way into the church just like anywhere else. The angry person could be member of the church or a stranger. Angry situations can quickly escalate into violence, even, homicide. There are some steps that church leaders can take to calm angry people and protect the flock.

The first step is to calm yourself. Take a deep breath. Don't let the other person get under your skin. You need to be calm to properly assess the situation.

Choose your battles wisely. It is not necessary to address every perceived wrong. Let minor things slide. Will your actions advance the gospel? God calls us to do justice and to love mercy and to walk humbly.

Be respectful at all times. Don't respond with anger or sarcasm. Speak softly, using I rather than you statements. Avoid judgments, accusations and absolutes.

Don't let your body language reveal your tension. Uncross your arms, relax and avoid gestures that may be seen as aggressive.

Let the other person speak first and listen to what the other person is saying. They might rant for a few minutes and get what they need to say off their chest. A person is more ready to listen when his rage is spent. Make sure they know you understand. Use active listening techniques to clarify what you’ve heard.

Stay focused on what you want to happen. Don't get caught up in side issues. Ask for what you need in clear and non-accusatory manner. Let the person have the last word. They will probably leave as soon as they had their say.

You can protect yourself from a violent assault by maintaining distance. You can also create a barrier by sitting down across a table. The act of sitting also helps to calm things.

Never touch an angry person! This can quickly turn an emotional situation into a physical one.

If you feel that a person is out of control or bent on violence, call 911. A person who is impaired by drugs, alcohol or mental illness can be unpredictable and beyond the capacity of a non-professional to handle. However, your calm demeanor can help prevent an escalation.

Most cases involving anger are minor issues that can be quickly resolved by listening and staying calm.

Sucker punches disguised as questions

Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself.
Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes
Proverbs 26:4-5

I have been told that there are no stupid questions but I have learned that there are trick questions. Jesus was asked trick questions by people who wanted to trap him into making a controversial statement about such things as taxes (Matthew 22:15-22). Some questions were silly arguments about wives in heaven (Matthew 22:25) or what kind of divorce is permitted (Matthew 19:1-10).

Jesus refused to be pulled into a trap. He declined to answer the questions directly and instead elevated the conversation to matters of greater importance or exposed the petitioner’s hidden motives.

Wise Christ-followers need to use discernment when answering unexpected questions. A sincere question seeks knowledge. If your answer leads to an argument, you stepped into a trap. Such questions are unkind and rude to say the least. Their purpose is to make the other person look silly, stupid or wrong.

I have learned to step away from such traps and let the trickster have the last word. It is of no value to me nor will it advance the Kingdom to enter into foolish controversies (Titus 3:9).

So, do you answer a fool or not?

Like Jesus, we can ask questions of our own to clarify or steer the conversation to higher ground. There are no stupid questions from a sincere speaker but the argumentative, self-satisfied fool with all the answers ought not to be answered “or you will be like him yourself.”