Roadkill

Good Morning Trinity Tribe,

We had a lovely trip to the Billy Graham Library yesterday. If you haven't been, it is quite interesting and well done.

On my way to Durham and back over the weekend, I listened to a lecture I had taped last year. It was Bishop Ken Carder who was one of my professors at Duke Divinity School. In his talk, he wanted us to consider what the metaphor for our church would be.

Looking at Dictionary.com, a metaphor is a figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance, as in “A mighty fortress is our God.” Or a metaphor is something used, or regarded as being used, to representsomething else; emblem; symbol.

Is it a tree or a lion or something else entirely? And then we are to explain it, of course.

The provocative example that a young pastor in a previous class had shared is that his church was like roadkill. The church was like that animal that has just been hit by an automobile…somewhere between life and death… The church he was referring to had 16-17 members in attendance…didn't want to have any new members unless they were just like the current ones…doing no outreach…etc. As horrible as that metaphor was, it has certainly stuck with me the last couple of days.

In Matthew 28, Jesus says this: 18 “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

I do not believe that roadkill churches was what Jesus was talking about. We must go out and make disciples which requires going out not just sitting in our safe sanctuary.

I have been thinking and praying about what metaphor we could use for Trinity UMC today and the Trinity UMC we want to see in the future. I want your input! What metaphor describes Trinity for you? What symbol would represent how you feel about Trinity? Please email me back or post your idea on our Facebook page.

By the way…some of our apportionment money to the Annual Conference goes to support people who support us as church leaders, church members, and as learners. One of those is our Conference Media Center. Here you can check out Bible study materials, personal study materials, and the like. Here is a brochure describing the services they provide.

http://nccumc.org/mediacenter/files/Media-Center-Brochure.pdf


If your Sunday School class needs some new material, here is just one of the many items they have in the Media Center:

The Media Center has a brand new bible study ready for your small group. Stephen Skelton of the Entertainment Ministry brings us a new series of modern parables featuring TV episodes of “The Lucy Show.” Skelton relates each episode to a biblical principle using scripture references and discussion questions. The Media Center has obtained a Certificate of License so that you can make copies of the provided study guide for everyone in your group.

Taking that first step

Dear Trinity Tribe,

I am not sure what first brought you through the doors at Trinity. I am here because with prayerful consideration the Bishop and the twelve District Superintendents thought I would be a good fit for this congregation. I appreciate how warm and open everyone has been to me and to Mark and Kenna and Hanna. Most of you, unlike me, didn't walk in where everyone knew your name.

Walking into a church for the first time is a weird thing. You don't know where to sit. You don't know the music. You don't know the people. You don't know how they do things, even the familiar ones. So, for all of you have walked into this church as a youth or an adult for the first time, BRAVO! You did something very difficult! It felt weird and uncomfortable, but you did it anyway.

There are things that we can do that make it easier for visitors. First, we can invite people to attend church with us. Whether it is a neighbor who moves in next door or that person you have known your whole life that doesn't have a church family, you can invite them to come. That way they have someone to sit with. They have someone to help them find the page number. And they have someone to eat lunch with afterwards. That is a powerful gift that you can give to a friend…a personal invitation to spend time with his/her Lord and Maker and to get together with some other parts of the Body of Christ.

Secondly, we can make our church easy to walk into. If there is someone at the door who sees you come out of your car in the rain and runs to meet you with a big golf umbrella, that would be a great first impression. If someone in the narthex showed you to a seat and sat you next to someone who was about your age, that would go a long way to make you feel comfortable. If someone called you by name, that makes you feel wanted and welcome! If someone introduces himself to you, you feel important. If the pastor or liturgist is careful to explain items of the service, it makes you feel more comfortable and like an insider rather than an outsider.

Let's all pray about who we can invite to church. Let's also pray about how we at Trinity can be more welcoming and how we can make first time visitors feel like insiders.

Also, I would love to hear stories about your first visit to Trinity. What felt good? What made you come back? What made you feel uncomfortable? Have you visited other churches that are doing something right? If so, let us know so we can shamefully adopt the practice! ;-)

Have a wonderful day!