Author: Zack Newsome

As we progress on this journey to something different – the journey toward a different kind of church community, we continue to run across opposition. We are viewed as radicals, as complainers – discontent with our past church experiences. Christians we share our “what if the church was…..” questions with, don’t get it. Good friends, even family seem to feel as though our personal struggles in this journey demand that they too struggle with these issues.. I think some people I talk to even think I have “crossed the line” as I am open to new an innovative ways of thinking of church.

I have to be honest with you – It’s discouraging. I feel alone more than I feel supported. I find myself depressed more than I am excited.

I wish that people could only see things as I now see them: a church in America that seems to be quickly losing it’s credibility with young generations alongside a culture that more than ever is spiritually cuirious and aware. The stakes are too high to miss this one. If we truly believe that the world needs what Jesus offers, both in this life and the next – that through Jesus alone God offers redemption and completion to our Genesis state, then we have to up the ante in our lives.

For us there is no longer any excuse worthy of sitting on our hands and waiting. Not economic concerns, not financial pressures, not public acceptance, not “what will my friends think of me” mentalities, not comfortable living, not the America Dream, not the fear of death or worse of failure, not lonliness, not lack of proper education, not lack of enough funds, or anything else can keep us from seeing ourselves as missioanl agents of God in whatever context he leads us to. We are no longer pastors – we are missional leaders. We are no longer Christians (in a Christendom sense) – we are followers of Jesus. We are no longer citizens of a faith-based sub-culture – we are citizens of heaven who excitedly live amongst people who aren’t (at least not yet). We are no longer comfortable people – but people learning to cope with the tension of living missional lives. We are no longer “come-and-see” church leaders – but “love-and live-with” neighbors and friends. We are people “sent to be a blessing” to the people in Mesa, AZ. No one and no thing can convince us otherwise.

While I hope that this challenges you to rethink the role the God has called you to play in the world, I don’t expect you to come to all of the same conclusions we have. Let it be said loud and clear: we are making some bold claims regarding our life choices, but please don’t feel as though with this comesa judgement of your life choices – that couldn’t be further from our hearts.

With that said, we do acknowledge that there is at times tension that arises from these life choices. For example, I am tremendously in support of a new church plant just started in the Phoenix-area. I am praying for their success and an interested in tracking with their progress. I have however, chosen a method a church planting that is fundamentally different from their chosen method and that causes a tension in my thinking at times and in discussions about this new church. I have learned that not only is this okay, but it should be expected as we dream of new and untested ways of thinking of faith and the church.

This is a discussion that continues to emerge from conversations with those I share life with. Here’s how it goes:

Zack – I’ve noticed you haven’t posted on your blog for a while.

Friend – I have a blog, but I can’t find the time in my life to actually use it consistently.

My response – Make the time.

Friend – Easy for you to say – you have no job right now and have plenty of free time.

My response (humbly) – That’s true, but I still think that no matter how busy we get, it’s imperative for the health of our souls to wrestle with the myriad of truth that we encounter each new day we walk in the way of Jesus. We have to carve out time to be alonewith our thoughts and our heartbeats and be reminded of what it beats for and what it hurts over. It’s just too important in my opinion.

Don’t get me wrong – it’s not about blogging. It’s about doing whatever you personally do to best connect with and process your innermost thoughts, creativity, passions, fears, doubts, and convictions. For me I do that best through blogging. For you it might be walking alone in the morning, strolling on the sidewalk, journaling, painting, praying, sipping a glass of red wine in the quiet of your house late at night or smoking a stogie on the back patio.

Whatever it is, don’t let busyness rob you of your soul. Realize that by nurturing the creative, contemplative, reflective, introspective, and innovative self you are more alive.

I recently purchased a very-cool leatherbound version of Eugene Peterson’s paraphrase translation of the Bible for both Kelli and I. Now this is my first purchase of a message translation and I will admit I was for many years a Message critic. “It’s not as accurate to the original texts as the NASB.” or “I won’t trade readability for accuracy!” are both statements that have come from my mouth on this subject.

But I am a changed man. Much to the chagrin of some of my more “theologically” cautious friends, I have adopted a new mentality towards the fleshing out of my faith.I will be open to practices, methods, traditions, and yes, even doctrines that I haven’t in the past identified with. By being “open” I don’t necessarily mean embrace, but I mean experience and consider.

This includes, charismatic practices/theology, more holistic/eastern expressions of Christianity (including Celtic faith practices), and even translations of the Bible that are outside of my CPC (Christian Politically Correct) bubble.

If you struggle with my decisions, let me share my thinking with you. It’s can be said with a simple statement:

“I don’t want to miss the complete expression of God in the universe because of my stubborn, pre-conceived, and biased opinions of how he should work and interact with me as his creation.”

My filter continues to be (and always will be) the Scriptures as I encounter new practices and beliefs, but I will be open to the fact that God is bigger than my systematic theology.

As for “The Message:Remix”, I read it often. #1)It reads more like the meta-narrative God’s story truly is and I am beginning to value that. As a culture, we have entered into a new era of language and tradition that staples like the NASB and NIV fail to effectively communicate in. and most importantly I would argue, #3) It uses language that revives the beauty of the narrative. It is inspiring language that begs you to read more and the mystery and beauty of God and his creation are revealed.

Check it out.

And for those of you still not convinced that it holds enough biblical accuracy to be valued: I recently met an irishman who is one the front lines pursuing peace in Ireland and is very much a follower of Jesus. He and I were talking of the beauty of the Message translation and and it’s critics. He told me that he was once at a conference where Eugene Peterson was speaking and someone in the crowd questioned him saying, “If you stand by your Message translation strongly, then tell us Dr. Peterson, what translation do you use in your regular devotion?” My new friend told me that Dr. Peterson hesitated as if almost embarrassed for the man, and calmy said, “Well I don’t use the Message if that’s what you’re getting at. I use the original greek and hebrews texts in my time alone with God.”

Crazy stuff and worth our consideration at least as the translation we read (rather than to study).

-Z

I found this blog post from Andrew Jones (with accompanying downloadable article) interesting. It summarizes much of what I am feeling and what has led me to dream new dreams of what the church could and should be like (see here for more). Read this over and let me know what you think (find it here).

I am not proud to admit it, but while I have had a myspace account for a while (only to log on to my friends’ sites) but as of tonight at 11:30 or so, I actually put a bit of energy into my profile, and even invited some friends. If you have a myspace account, please be my friend. Reach me at http://www.myspace.com/znewsome.

Peace,
-Z

Yesterday, after almost missing my flight back to Phoenix, I boarded the plane and found a seat in the next to last row. After getting settled I noticed the guy across the row from me looked familiar. Within minutes he was involved in a conversation with the guy directly in front of me. Doing my own thing, I couldn’t help but hear words that interested me about “tracks”, “that Rick liked them” and “that Warner wasn’t going to be a problem”. I looked up to see Anthony Kiedis (the lead singer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers) in the seat in front of me and Chad Smith (the drummer for the band) sitting across the aisle. Not wanting to invade their space and right to have a peaceful and normal flight, I said few words, mainly to encourage their artistic offerings and discover what they were headed to Phoenix to do.

As the flight went on, others on the flight realized who shared this experience with them and began to stare out of the corner of their eyes at the two musicians. What a trippy thing it must be to live life feeling a multitude of eye corners on your every move.

It was fun and a bit crazy to have Anthony Kiedis serenade your landing with Stevie Wonder’s “Isn’t she lovely” I pinched myself a few times on that plane to make sure I wasn’t dreaming

At what volume do you listen to your music? Today as I sat in Zoey’s Coffee Loft I was had my ipod cranked with some ambient, new agey music as I sat and thought, wrote, and became engrossed with myself. I do this often. I rarely pump the volume to it’s limits, but I on most occasions, turn up my music just enough to drown out the world around me. The thought reminds me of a advertisement I saw yesterday for a local newspaper here in Ventura where I am visiting. The ad went like this, “Ventura Newspaper (I forget the real name):It’s always been about you”. I was hit by the absurdity and consumeristic nature of such an ad. I even laughed out loud.

Yet today, in my favorite coffee shop, I very much lived that mantra. It always has been about me. I find myself doing things to drown out the world around me. After all, I have so much going on in my existance as it is. I have little time for others, for their problems, their pain, their hurt, their search for completion and acceptance, even the simple sounds that living life makes. I drown them out with the newest Coldplay, or some chilled-out Snow Patrol.

I tried something different today. I turned down my ipod to the point where I could enjoy my music AND hear the soundtrack of nearby lives as well. Suddenly some things made sense. As followers of God in the way of Jesus (my new description of myself), we struggle with the battle betwen being focusing on our own stuff while loving and caring for others that we share life with. For me, I often find myself doing one or the other – I wallow in my own pain and struggle in one moment and listen to and love on someone else in the next. Maybe we need to stop this “either/or” way of living and move to a more “and” posture. Maybe rather than turning off the sounds of our own journey’s we might just turn them down a bit that we might also be able to listen and learn from the journey’s of others.

In my experience this morning, I am able to listen to my music with all it’s emotional cues AND also hear the clanging of coffee cups, the whirl of the espresso machine, the sounds of the ivy as the wind ruffles through it, the horns of cars alerting pedestrians of their presence on the nearby street, the sputter of the coffee dispenser as it runs out of it’s goods, the creaking of the old wooden floor under the feets of my fellow patrons, the laughs of the joke-teller as well as the joke-receiver, the conversations of troubled parents just outside the door, and even the music that the coffee shop has deemed most appropriate for it’s guests. How we miss out on dimensions of life, dimensions of both God’s creation as well as the progress of his redemptive work in the world around us, when we turn up our music too loud and drown out the world around us.

It’s time that we as God’s people, stop listening only to the “music” of our own lives and existences and add in the sweet sounds of the world around us. The crys of people longing to be valued for who they are, to be seen as what they are – the creative work of God. We must not continue to drown out the injustices of this world, the unloviness of this world, the dark places we wish didn’t exist and turrn down our stuff to the point where we can both be who God is making us to be AND his people commissioned to represent his loving embrace, his healing hand, his unconditional acceptance, his eternal justice, and his all-accepting forgiveness.

To do this, we must be willing to hear both the bad and the good, the beautiful and the unlovely, the excviting and the painful sounds of the earth. Happy listening.