DISCLAIMER: ALL RAMBLINGS ARE MY OWN. THEY IN NO WAY REPRESENT THE VIEWS OF ANY CHURCH OR ORGANISATION THAT I HAVE WORKED FOR OR AM CURRENTLY ASSOCIATED WITH...
Christianity should be simple.
John 3:16 simple.
The most basic kids-talk simple.
Understandable to the young and uneducated.
Christianity should be complex.
PhD thesis complex.
1000 page theology texts complex.
Still intriguing well into your nineties after reading, studying and teaching the Bible for decades.
Christianity must be both - Simple and complex.
This is the gospel.
Good news for any age.
Good news for any education level.
Good news for all.
In youth ministry, you either love them or are driven up the wall by them.
They either know it all or resent the church.
They either answer everything or don’t utter a word.
They either ask the most insightful questions or try to undermine everything you attempt to do.
Now, these binary options aren’t the only places a ministers kids will fall, but they can all be true.
But, does a similar thing happen in other professions?
Are the children of teachers or school principals a polarising blessing/curse?
Are they also softened or hardened due to the experiences of their parents?
Is it the same for lawyers, doctors and garbage men?
Do they also run amuck or are they extra grateful and gracious for the peak behind the curtain?
I’ve written about ministers having hobby-horses before.
I’ve also shared the two ministry-related topics that I could ramble on about.
For me, my two hobby-horses were developed over a number of years in ministry, especially in dealing with the struggles younger guys face.
I suspect that most ministers develop their driving topic while they are still studying.
Most likely, this burning question is cultivated through an assignment, subject or research project.
Hobby-horses are inevitable. They are a result of passion.
And this passion is fired during seminary.
It is refined.
I wonder though, does a developing minister realise that they hobby-horse is growing?
Furthermore, should a minister seek to ever align his topic-of-choice with a prospective church?
If not, do they realise - after a lengthy tenure - the influence their passion (even unconsciously) will have on their congregation?
Or, should a minister’s passion be shaped by the church they are serving in?
Controversies happen in churches.
They flare up.
Feelings are hurt.
Messages are jumbled.
Time passes…
The controversy dies down.
People start to move on.
So, how long should a church keep milking the controversy?
How long should they keep mentioning it?
How long should they keep adding “in light of what we have all gone through?”
How long should should you stop awkwardly… when you would usually drop the name “that person?”
The short answer is, I don’t know.
A nice, tight, mathematical equation would be delightful.
I’ve been at a number of churches who have ridden the wave of controversy.
Some have handled it well.
Some… could have handed it better.
No matter where on the “handling proficiency” spectrum a church finds itself, one thing is certain.
Eventually, you need to let the controversy go.
You need to put the skeleton away in the closet.
Yes, learn the lessons.
Have the conversations.
Make the appropriate apologies.
Address the issues.
But… mark a mental date when you will move on.
Then, look forward, not back.