Thoughts from Paul Hill

Over the past year Dr. Scott Magnuson-Martinson has been studying us at Vibrant Faith Ministries. Dr. Scott has 30 years experience on the faculty at Normandale Community College.

While on his sabbatical Dr. Scott did an extensive analysis of whether what we teach at VFM actually makes a difference.  Specifically, does the Vibrant Faith Frame (Five Principles for Effective Faith Formation, Four Key Faith Practices, leading to three characteristics of discipleship) transform congregations by deepening the faith life of the members and leaders.

Here’s one of the things he learned: CONGREGATIONS RECEPTIVE TO USING MULTIPLE FORMS OF LEARNING ARE MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE IN FORMING FAITH AND MAXIMIZING THE WISDOM OF THE VIBRANT FAITH FRAME.

In other words, God speaks to us in many ways and the Spirit works faith in us in many ways.  Multiple intelligence learning, developed by Howard Gardner in 1983, states that we learn in many modalities including:

• Interpersonal: God connects through the relationships coming from community interaction (think Oprah).  A VFM resource for this would be FAITHTALK CARDS.
• Spatial: God connects through visualizing ideas, concepts and images in our minds eye (think Picasso). A VFM resource for this would be SOULARIUM CARDS or PRAYING IN COLOR.
• Kinesthetic: God connects through our bodily movement and activity (think most any male child or church camp). A VFM resource for this would be MISSION TRIP RESOURCES.
• Musical: God speaks through our sensitivity to sound, tones and rhythms (think Mozart, or Justin Bieber).  A VFM resource for this would be our theme song LOOSE IN THE WORLD by Peter Mayer.
• Logical-mathematical: God connects through our processing of abstractions and connecting the dots (think Bill Gates). A VFM resource for this would be VIBRANT FAITH IN THE CONGREGATION by David Anderson, or the FAITH FORMATION LEARNING EXCHANGE.
• Linguistic: God speaks to us through words, language, verbal cues, and reading (think Shakespeare).  A VFM resource for this would be all the tips, tools and resources on VIBRANT FAITH @ HOME, or all the research studies on the FAITH FORMATION LEARNING EXCHANGE.
• Intrapersonal: God engages us through internal reflection and thought (think praying nuns, contemplative faith practices).  VIBRANT FAITH @ HOME offers hundreds of these kinds of activities for the individual and the household.
• Naturalistic: God provides  information, inspiration and personal organization via our surroundings, especially nature (think Chef Rachel Ray, or John Muir). Contact me and I’ll walk you through all my classes I teach titled WHY CAN’T CHURCH BE MORE LIKE CAMP?
• Existential/spiritual: (Gardner was more ambiguous on this one) God speaks through our inner spiritual and existential lives, struggles and insights. VFM’s MILESTONES MINISTRY covers a wide range of life events and stages.

This research is so important, notes Dr. Scott, that he suggested we ask one question of prospective leaders and congregations with whom we would work: “Are you open to sharing faith in multiple ways?”  If they are then we should extend our services, if not….walk away.

How would you answer this question for yourself and your congregation?

I often joke that the New Testament is really the story of a guy just trying to get on a retreat.  Jesus lived intensely with people.  Not surprisingly, Scripture records he also tried to get away and retreat as well, with mixed results.

Summertime affords the possibility for us to do the same.  I like the pace, the opportunities, the longer days, the time outdoors, fishing, connecting with family and friends…it’s all good!

I have an internal set of questions/expectations  for my summers. Nearly all of them circle around the core question, “How can I restore myself…body, mind, soul, and spirit?”  This may seem like a rather selfish approach to the summer, but read on and see what you think of my questions. For me, these questions really make up much of how I think about the sacredness of summer.

1) Will I spend time with the people I really need and want to stay connected with?

2) Will I get off the grid for at least two weeks straight?

3) Will I get to a church camp for at least a week?

4) How can I help someone else have a great experience at a church camp?

5) Will I spend massive amounts of time out-of-doors appreciating and preserving the environment?

6) How will I do intentional service for others this summer?

7) Will I get massive amounts of time exercising?

8) Will Elaine/family/friends and I get lots of sunsets and times to gaze at stars?

9) What little projects can I look forward to doing and with whom?

10) What’s the reading list look like?

One tool to use while living in these summer sacred spaces to help facilitate a better life together is MANTALK CARDS. They are actually a deck of cards with questions written on them organized around various themes like “manmories, wild man, manships, man-o-man and more.

Vibrant Faith Ministries developed these cards with Lutheran Men in Mission.  Although the title sounds very masculine, mom’s, wives and girlfriends love them too because they get their men to talk.  The questions go deep and are not intended for younger adolescents or children.

And on Vibrant Faith @ Home there are many opportunities for enhancing the sacred summer.  One of my favorites is Blessings for Summer Occasions.  To download it all you need to do is create your own ID and passsword on the bottom left column.

How are you planning your sacred summer?

For about 300,000 years (more or less) human beings have walked this earth with the homo sapien brains we have in our heads today.  Somewhere along the line we discovered the benefits of fire…including s’mores!

At those early fires humans received four benefits: 1) cooking (they could speed up the digestive process rather than eating everything raw), 2) safety (keep the predators away), 3) warmth, and 4) community (literally sitting around the campfire telling stories, sharing wisdom, bonding and more).

In other words, campfires are primordial to us.  Although our urban, technological culture seems a long way off from the cave and fire, our brains haven’t changed.  After all, isn’t owning or renting an urban home “with a fireplace” considered a premium?

Therefore, a big part of human spirituality resides in the ancient flames of the campfire. The CAMPFIRE STORY by the Rend Collective captures this well.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vk2MpaTEzXw

There’s a link to be made here!  Congregations would do well to try and connect with our primordial selves.  Addressing issues of cooking, safety, warmth and community speak deeply into our brains.

David Kinnamen, in his book YOU LOST ME, says that young people are leaving the church in droves because they see the church as anti-intellectual, highly polarized, and irrelevant in matters of sex, faith, and life together.  Hard to argue with much of that.

BUT, what if the first thoughts that came to their minds were cooking, safety, warmth and community?  In other words, what if church was like a campfire?  That’s how our brains work.

Here’s the action step to take:  Parents, families, youth and adults are all exploring what to do this summer.  It’s vacation time!!!  I’d suggest going to a church camp and sit around the campfire.  I know you’ll discover a primordial spirituality that God has provided for thousands of years.

I believe this is so important that Elaine and I are taking our four-year old grandson, James, to grandparent camp at Joy Ranch in South Dakota.  I know we’ll all grow in faith.

And at VFM we created a new resource for camps called Vibrant Faith @ Camp to help reinforce the spiritual power of the campfire all year round.

There’s a lot more to a s’more than marshmellows and chocolate.

My mom is 91, requires assisted living housing, and is fading away mentally.  Like many boomers, I’m managing her affairs, selling her house, distributing her lifelong treasures, etc.

While plowing through a pile of her papers I came across this prayer.  Although she is not longer able to articulate these aspirations, at one time she saw value in them, as do I.

So, for all you boomers taking caring of aging parents, this one’s for you, written out as it appears on her document:

“Dear Lord, Thou knowest better than I know myself that I am growing older and will some day be old…keep me from the fatal habit of thinking I must say something on every subject and on every occasion…release me from craving to try to straighten out everybody’s affairs…make me thoughtful, but not moody; helpful but no bossy…with my vast store of wisdom, it seems a pity not to use it all-but Thou knowest, Lord, that I want a few friends at the end.  Keep my mind free from the recital of endless details-give me wings to get to the point…seal my lips on my aches and pains.  They are increasing and love of rehearsing them is becoming sweeter as the years go by…I dare not ask for grace enough to enjoy the tales of others, but help me to endure them with patience…I dare not ask for improved memory, but a growing humility and a lessening cocksureness when my memory seems to clash with the memories of others…teach me the glorious lesson that occasionally I may be mistaken…keep me reasonably sweet.  I do not want to be a saint–some of them are so hard to live with–but a sour old person is one of the crowning works of the devil…give me the ability to see good things in unexpected places and talents in unexpected people.  Give me the grace to tell them so.  Amen.

There are worse prayers.  Before you lose your marbles, maybe you might want to write down your prayer for getting old.

At VFM we created Milestones Ministry to mark memorable, meaningful moments such as are noted in this prayer.  And we are adding 9-11 new ones for occasions through the whole life cycle. My colleague, Dr. David Anderson, danderson@vibrantfaith.org, would love to talk to you about how to use these tools…especially for outreach.

Plus, one of my favorite resources for theologically marking the important stages of life is the pearl written by the Nielson family, FOR EVERYTHING A SEASON.

Yesterday I used the word “generativity” in my weekly postal. My friend, Pastor Rhonda Hanisch, commented that this is not a word. This steered my thoughtalizing to other times I may have mispake or othewise grammatized improperly like. After all, I aren’t an English major.

But then, another reader postalated that “generativity” is a word and reflexes Eric Erickson’s developing stage of older personhoods.

I found “generativity” on Wikipedia, so it must be a word since everything on the internet is truthy, more or less so much.

So you tell me, is “generativity” a word, and do you think my usaitilization of this word makes sense?  Have an enjoyadized day!

When chaos, mayhem and murder take place it forces me to ask the question, “What are my core values and do they stand in stark contrast to this horror?”  The Boston bombings brought me back to this question.

Here’s where I settle.  On my best days I want to be a 4G man.  It’s about GOD, GRATITUDE, GENERATIVITY, and GENEROSITY.

The 4G’s are a shorthand way to be reminded that I’m not the center of anything, it’s about GOD, God’s will, God’s world, and obedience to God.

And because life is from and about God, then GRATITUDE can be the only appropriate response.

Out of GRATITUDE can we focus on the younger generations by being GENERATIVE.  Helping them find their way, mentoring, coaching, listening are a big part of this.

Knowing that life is about GOD, and being GRATEFUL, while doing GENERATIVE work with the young, top it all off with GENEROSITY of all we have.

I want to be a 4G man.  I want to live in a 4G world with 4G people.  It’s worth striving for.

On your best days, what do you strive to be and value?

Whatever happened to civil discourse amongst Christians? It seems Christians have assimilated the crude, polarizing rhetoric that dominates our culture. We need to repent and we need to model something better.

I read a blog last week full of religious self-righteousness and rhetorical put-downs of church leaders of a certain denomination. The author called church leaders “muckity-mucks”. Name calling is never constructive or helpful.

Another blog criticized a church organization in this way, “I think what they are doing stinks.” I contacted the writer to see if he had spoken first with the organization. He had not. I reminded the writer of Jesus teachings in Matthew 18:15.

And the rhetorical vitriol that Rob Bell has received through social media says more about his critics than it does Rob Bell.

Social media can appeal to our worst instincts for taking cheap shots without suffering the consequences.  Bullying and “bearing false witness” are not unique to the public schools. Highly charged “Us vs. Them” Christian rhetoric is just as abundant. Used in this way it reflects the writers need to triangulate others to his/her point of view (always a lame strategy), or the need to be (self) righteous and “not like the other sinners” (always Pharisaic).

What ever happened to thinking about our life together as brothers and sisters in Christ? “Life Together” is a core value of my seminary, Wartburg, in Dubuque, Iowa. Having German roots, the life and teachings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer shape the culture. I’m grateful for that ethos that was part of my formation.

In this volatile, divisive social media world, let’s recover “life together” through civil discourse. I am firmly convinced that most Christians are really tired of the rhetoric and vitriol and are seeking the civil center. It is this big broad, moderate middle where most of us live and it is this big, broad, moderate middle that Vibrant Faith Ministries strives to serve.

The title of this blog describes the mission statement developed by a former student of mine, Jason Martinez. He did an amazing thing with his family. They put together a family ministry master plan!

Jason recently graduated from our VFM Youth Ministry Certification School.  A requirement of the course is to put together a long range plan and design for your ministry setting.  Jason and Gretchen Martinez decided that their family of six was their primary youth ministry site.  They took the 18 step planning outline we use at VFM and applied it to their family!

Here’s their vision statement: M…Make disciples of Christ, A…Allow time for devotions, R…Remain focused and positive, T…Teamwork, I…Inspire and Include each other, N…Non-stop Niceness, E…Everyone is a person first, Z…Zoo!  (Now you know why I used a photo from the movie “We Bought a Zoo” with Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson) They spelled out their name, their core values, their purpose, their operational methodology, and even a strategic place for their life together (the Zoo!)

Jason has taken “Home is Church Too” to a new level.  To get the full details contact him directly at jason80234@msn.com.

Another one of my students, Rebecca Mikelonis, did a similar exercise. As part of the planning process they did the serious introspection of asking whether all the sports leagues they were a part of were actually hurting them as a family.  They concluded the baseball had become a false god.  WOW! How many soccer/baseball/football/etc. families have done that kind of questioning and confession? Check with Rebecca at rebeccamikelonis@yahoo.com for more details.

So what’s your families mission?  If I sat down with your kids, could they tell me your core values and how you plan to live them out?

Genius struck me this week. Or actually, a genius gave me a great idea. I was doing a presentation online of our new VFM product Vibrant Faith @ Home Plus. This subscription service allows congregations to embed Vibrant Faith @ Home into their website, create online groups, offers seasonal cross-generational activities for congregational leaders and more.

Anyway, I was walking a young pastor through VF@Home Plus.  I do this by first talking about the three places where religious socialization must happen…the tent (home), the synagogue (camps, mission trips, theology on tap etc.) and the temple (congregations). (See my blog from two weeks ago for more depth on this.)  I showed her how VF@ Home Plus allows a congregational leader to create groups, thus the opportunity for ongoing, online relationships.

She says this: “I love this because I’ll create a ‘Preachers Workshop’ group for my 8th graders.  I’ll post the Gospel text and ask them to give me their opinions on the text and how it relates to them.  This is way better than sermon notes! Then I’ll write my sermon and on Monday and Tuesday after I preach I’ll ask for their feedback!”  WOW, I WAS BLOWN AWAY BY THIS IDEA.

What she has done is blurred the lines.  When exactly does the sermon begin?  When does it end?  Where is the sermon delivered?  Who’s preaching it? In this single idea alone, I saw, in a new way, how we ought to do church in the 21st Century.  BLUR THE LINES.  Tent, synagogue and temple are a continuous context for faith and relationships.   People in ministry are flowing back and forth between them without really being aware that boundaries have been crossed.  WHEN YOU BLUR THE LINES YOU STAY RELEVANT! WHEN YOU BLUR THE LINES YOU STAY IN RELATIONSHIP.  WHEN YOUR BLUR THE LINES YOU QUIT THINKING IN SILOS.

Instead of leaders asking, “How do we build a better temple, or temple program?”, the question is “How do we create blurry lines where God talk, relationships and the journey of faith are happening in the home, unorthodox settings, and in the congregation?” The internet and social media in particular allow for this to happen.

Using Vibrant Faith @ Home Plus in this way allows this pastor to be in the homes of her 8th graders, in the social media world of her 8th graders, in the congregation with her 8th graders, in the thoughts of her 8th graders, and in continuous relationship with her 8th graders.  She’s a genius!  I’m just stealing it.

As a church leader, are you asking the right question, “How do we blur the lines?”

My good friend and mentor Dick Sayther, of Gronlund Sayther Brunkow (GSB), and I have been having a rolling conversation around the question of “Why Can’t Church Be More Like Camp?”  Dick is a former pastor and camp director and has helped raise millions of dollars for church camps over his illustrious career.  (The untold story is that he has trained multiple generations of camp directors to learn to raise money and helped camps thrive and adapt.).

Over the past year, Dick started attending Hosanna! (a Lutheran Church) in Lakeville, Minnesota.  Says Dick, “This church operates like a camp, and any church of any size can do it too.”

Dick has now written about the characteristics of camp he sees taking place at Hosanna!.  It’s a fascinating paper and provides a case study to the editorial position I’ve taken in this blog, that camps and outdoor ministries can provide real insight into how to think about doing and being church in these early days of the 21st century.

I don’t want to steal Dick’s thunder so much as to direct you to where you can read his entire paper, “13 Ways A Church Can Be Like Camp”. He’s identified 13 points of contact between camp and church.