trying to figure out where i am...

after reading a blog entry recently, i discovered that not all people think like me... i know, that must come as a shock...

i've been trying to wrap my head around some church stuff lately... trying to grasp this argument and movement of the emerging church - and why some are so dead set against it... i spent a big chunk of my morning looking up articles on baptist press and back issues of our paper where there are some articles about emerging church, reading a couple of blogs and websites... i still don't have a clear answer... but i think i've discovered a couple of things...

i hate the terms conservative and liberal (and moderate for that matter)... i hate the way of thinking that puts labels on people and says, "this is who you are because you're a conservative (or a liberal)..." some might enjoy it and find comfort in their label... i do not... i hate to be categorized into certain sub-groups... what makes our christian subculture any different than high school with our cliques and segregated lunchrooms (churches)?

i do understand that on some level, it is good to understand where one is coming from in a discussion... it helps when i know where someone is theologically, however, if i know that, i immediately assume things about that person that may or may not be true... cameron (my boss) and i have talked about the assumptions we (naturally) bring to the table when talking with people from work... there are definite assumptions that i'm sure everyone has in my office about each other... those assumptions could range from lifestyle choices to voting habits to theological stances... i think that many of the people in my office have fallen into the same trap i have in thinking that "everyone thinks like me" when that may not be true...

back to the bigger issue at hand... the thing i hate most is the "good ol' boy" system... it gets talked about so often among my peers about my office... and the bigger system as well (sbc)... and i wish that i could argue with it... i wish it wasn't true... but there is definitely this good ol' boy system in place... it seriously makes me want to throw up... it reminds me of a college fraternity or high school football team where you have to be in the "in crowd" in order to get ahead... and everyone who meets the approval of the "good ol' boys" is fine, as long as they continue to play by the rules...

i don't want to be a part of it... ironically, i work in the middle of it... and yet, there are people who would love to be a part of it and who would give their "eye teeth" as my grandma would say, to get in... if only they could crack the "good ol' boy" code and get in it, they would be set... when did following Jesus Christ require the entry into the "good ol' boy" system? "follow Me and I will make you a good ol' boy." i don't think that's exactly what Jesus had in mind... and yet, that's the system in place...

i don't mean to criticize all pastors or convention employees... as much as i hate the labels, i guess i have now put a label on many who don't deserve it... in general, this is what i see going on... arguments about whether a pastor is justified in his attempts to lead a church by using means that may or may not be the norm... whether the "experience" of Christ in a worship service is as valid as a 45-minute sermon from the book of Leviticus... whether a clip from a movie or a secular song containing an application point that could be relevant to today's culture is acceptable...

(disclaimer: here's another little sarcastic side note...) i guess we should just shut ourselves in from the culture... don't talk to non-christians except while holding a tract... and don't you dare send your kids to public school... or compartmentalize our lives so much that our christian life (including church, personal devotion time and prayer) is separate from other aspects of our lives... so the two should never overlap... and maybe we should have hats that tell which aspect we're in each second of the day... when i go to see a movie, i'll wear my "culture/movie hat" and when i'm at work, i'll wear my "working hat" and when i'm at church, i'll wear my "Jesus hat" - but don't expect me to talk about Jesus when i'm working or going to a movie... and kick me out of the church if i talk about movies or culture when i'm at church... because that's "Jesus hat" time...

then there's a whole different world with the spiritual/secular tension when it comes to culture and what's appropriate in church, etc... i won't attempt to battle that giant today... i just felt like journaling some preliminary thoughts on a debate that is seemingly prevalent in my world at the moment...