What's in a Movie?

Most people who know me, know that I enjoy watching movies.  As I think through what kinds of films are my favorite, it's hard to come up with a specific genre that I like best.  The best way to describe my favorites might just be saying something as simple as the films that are well-made and thought out.

Unfortunately, as simple of a statement as that is, it's hardly easy to come by in today's culture.  Maybe I shouldn't say that it's hard to come by but that you need to do some searching to find it.  You're not necessarily going to see trailers for these kinds of films during primetime television.  These films are not the ones with the highest weekend gross.  Oftentimes, these films are not the ones that are garnering major awards or critical reviews, but they are the ones that, in my opinion, can best be defined as "art."

I must admit that there are times when all I want to do is laugh.  Laughter is therapeutic, a salve for my wounded soul, and finding a silly or stupid comedy that can have me fully engaged in side-splitting laughter is a necessity at times.  But even the answer to the question of what is funny has significantly changed.  The latest string of "funny" movies seems to be more about sexual and gross-out humor than anything else.  Once upon a time, not too long ago, it seems that we could be a little bit more creative than that.  While Steve Martin had his fair share of crudeness, there are few things that can get me laughing like the line, "He hates these cans" from "The Jerk."  Once upon a time, we were able to be funny without having to delve into new and deeper levels of crudeness.

Recently, some friends of mine watched a film that stirred them enough to have posted to the Facebook world about what they had seen.  I was inspired when I saw these posts, realizing that they had been touched by creativity and art, they had experienced poignancy within film that does not happen as often as we would like it to.  It's helped me to realize the need to reboot my movie blog, where I would review films that moved me or inspired me in some way.

The problem is, there are crummy movies coming up on every side.  I won't even get into some of the movies that are offered by the Christian community as art.  Every time I think about those films, I remember back to history class when the center of art and culture was the church, providing creativity that set the pace for culture.  It can hardly be said that this is the case for today.  We're pulling decent films off of the shelf because of "objectionable content" and thinking that our own little whitewashed worlds paint more of a reality than someone who was born into circumstances far beyond their control.

To find good films, one has to look.  I have often been surprised, pleasantly so, at where I have found these kinds of films.  Sometimes I have found them in the bargain bin of a retail chain, other times it was through the recommendation of an acquaintance, still other times it was during a bout with insomnia on late night television.  Regardless of how I found them, they were there, waiting to be discovered and appreciated.

The advantage of living in an age of technology is that we don't have to settle for what some try to pass off as art when in reality is it just mindless drivel.  Instead, we can take to the internet and discover things for ourselves, branching out to find things of beauty and creativity, not with the latest actors making their millions, but with artists who simply have a story to tell.  If you seek it, you can find it.

Now, don't get me wrong, I like a good action film, comedy film, adventure film, or thriller just as much as the next guy, but sometimes, I actually want to watch a film that will stretch my mind and make me think.  Thankfully, they're out there waiting to be found.  I'm going on an adventure to see what's out there.

In the World

Lifeway’s recent decision to pull “The Blind Side” from their shelves has been troubling me since it started showing up in the press last week.  There have been varied numbers of people within the Christian community who have shared their views on this issue.  They have expressed themselves well and I would encourage you, if you are so inclined, to read them.  I have put links below:

http://www.breakpoint.org/bpcommentaries/entry/13/19736

http://rachelheldevans.com/christian-bookstores-chokehold

http://www.eyvonnesharp.com/what-i-dont-want-to-say/

http://www.christianpost.com/news/christians-upset-over-lifeways-removal-of-the-blind-side-77806/

http://www.christianpost.com/news/new-sbc-president-supports-lifeways-the-blind-side-removal-76920/

If you are not familiar with what happened, here’s the brief story.  The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) recently resolved at their convention meeting at the end of June to remove the movie, “The Blind Side” from their denomination’s bookstore’s (LIfeway) shelves.  As soon as the press got a hold of it, they all told the story, painting Lifeway and Southern Baptists as ignorant prudes who miss the point of a good, redemptive story by focusing on the “impure” aspects of it.

After doing some research on this whole story, I’ve discovered a different side of this story.  Turns out that the pastor who made a big deal about the movie, although I still don’t agree with him, began a resolution within his own state’s Southern Baptist Convention back in 2010, the same year that Lifeway began selling the movie.  So, in fairness to him, his objections to the film’s sales seem to have occurred fairly quickly after the chain began selling the movie.  But why did it take two years for it to get to the national level?  Other than selling tons of copies of the film, what else occurred during this time within Lifeway?

Like I said, I don’t have a problem if people choose to filter the things that they watch, listen to, and read.  In my opinion, we need to be careful about doing this as it can certainly promote a very one-sided viewpoint of issues.  But the removable of objectionable material within stores and especially homes, I understand and even support that.  To that end though, I question as to what caused Lifeway to have allowed the film to be sold in the first place.  If someone within the organization had viewed it prior to the chain agreeing to sell the film, would this whole situation have been eliminated?  Did someone watch it?  I would hope that Lifeway has learned a valuable lesson through all of this: monitor and approve what you are selling to avoid embarrassments like this in the future.

As I stewed over this situation and this post, I began to think about the things that the chain sells.  To be honest, there are things that are being sold in there every day that are objectionable to me.  Some of the T-shirts, bumper stickers, movies, and books are downright offensive to me as a follower of Jesus Christ, but that’s really another post.  Part of this Florida pastor’s objection was probably due to the store’s association with his denomination, which I can somewhat understand, but don’t be surprised when a world that desperately needs to hear about Jesus turns a deaf ear to Christ followers after instances like this.  While I’m not encouraging us to all go out and watch films depicting gratuitous amounts of sex, violence, and language, anyone who steps into a mall, a school, or even a place of business knows that things are far from sanitary in those places.  Depending on the neighborhoods where you reside, it might just be a matter of stepping out your front door to hear things that you don’t necessarily promote within the confines or your house.

My biggest struggle with this is that it comes across as a promotion for a “better time” when Leave It To Beaver and Father Knows Best ruled the airwaves, when family conflicts were resolved in half an hour.  Life can be very messy, I have experienced that firsthand over the last 18 months.  Things don’t always fit neatly into a box.  Sometimes things spill over and they’re not pleasant, they offend, they hurt.  Sometimes, while attempting to filter out certain offensive aspects of mediums like movies and books, we miss the greater story and the greater good that is being portrayed through it all.  As some of my fellow bloggers have written, there are some fairly objectionable stories within the Bible that could easily be sanitized and actually have been.  How much of the story of Jonah do kids really get?  It usually has a happy ending.  Ever read the end of the Book of Jonah?  It’s far from a happy ending?  Ever read the Book of Judges?  Tent stakes through a man’s head.  A knife thrust into the obese belly of a king and the fact closing in over it.  I just wonder what happens with these stories.

Throughout the narrative of Scripture, the people of God are called to be different, to act differently, to speak differently, and to live differently.  The New Testament writers speak of not being conformed to the pattern of this world.  Theologians have written books about Christ and culture.  There is to be a difference between those who consider themselves followers of Jesus and those who don’t.  My concern is that sometimes those differences look foolish not because of Jesus but because of us.  It’s one thing to look foolish over the radical and reckless message of the Cross, it’s another thing to look foolish because, well, we just look foolish.

There’s so much more to say on this and I hope to in days to come.  In the meantime, there are a few takeaways that I see from all of this.  First of all, be informed.  Make sure that you do your best to get the whole picture of the story.  It’s easy to think that everything I need to know I can learn from Fox News, CNN, CNBC, or even Yahoo! News, but we really need to explore further to get a broader picture.  If you own a store or promote something, make sure you are informed as possible about it.  Second of all, think about your reactions to things, they may look perfectly acceptable to you, but think about the message that might be conveyed through you reactions.  Not to say that you back down from reactions based upon how others view them, but there might be a different way of conveying it that maintains a witness without losing face with those who we are trying to be a witness to.

As long as we live in this world, we will constantly struggle with how to live.  I am sure that many of us will have our differences in this area.  The key in all of it is to try to keep the conversation going, we can all learn from each other in the midst of it all.

Control

It seems that much of life can become a tug of war between ourselves and the reality of our surroundings.  We constantly attempt to gain control of our circumstances, especially when they seem to be spiraling out of control.  We want to exercise our strength and at least live under the delusion that we actually have the power, strength, and wit to be able to control our circumstances.  But the reality is that we can no more gain control of these uncontrollable circumstances than can a rock pick itself up and fly the length of a football field.

It might sound defeatist, but I think that the sooner we embrace the reality of our own lack of control, the sooner we can embrace the freedom of rolling with our circumstances.  In some ways, it reminds me of a car accident and the resulting whiplash that might occur.  I have heard people say that if you are ever in a car accident, you should just relax and wait for the impact.  That's so much easier said than done.  Every inch of our bodies wants to brace ourselves for that impact as a means and measure of self-protection.  It's the tightening and tensing of our muscles that causes the whiplash though.

Uncontrollable circumstances in life can be very similar.  In an effort to protect ourselves from the results of the "crash," we brace ourselves, thinking that we will be so much better off.  We grab on to whatever we can put our hands on and hold on for dear life, hoping that whatever it is we are standing on or holding on will be strong enough to weather the impact.  How many times have you braced yourself for the impact only to find that what you were holding onto was not nearly as strong as you thought that it might be?

I have thought a lot about the Serenity Prayer in recent days.  "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference."  How often do we attempt to change things that are completely out of our control?  It's that "control" thing again, we desperately want to have it and when we realize that we can't have it, we fight and flail, kicking and screaming to try to gain control that we never had nor can we ever gain.

But, like I said, the sooner that we realize that control is not ours to be had, the more freedom we will gain.  To be honest, a lot of my faith really comes from this place, the place where I begin to realize that I have no control over certain circumstances in my life.  In fact, I have no control over many things in my life.  I hit traffic on the highway and I have no control over it.  A major storm interrupts my plans and I have no control over it.  Disease withers and weakens those who I love and I have no control over it.

Here's where my faith comes in: I may not have control, but I know the One who does.  It is not a sign of weakness, but a realization and acceptance of reality.  I think about the disciples, riding their boat across the lake when a storm came upon them.  They did their best to control the boat and keep it from sinking and finally, they gave up and woke Jesus who somehow managed to sleep through the whole thing at the back of the boat.  He wakes up and treats that storm as if it's just an annoying little gnat, an inconvenience to his circumstances.

I'm certainly not saying that God is going to come in and take control every time our life seems as if it's spinning out of control, but if nothing else, when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He is there.  When we climb up on the mountain, glimpsing all that we can, He is there.  And more importantly, there will be a day when nothing will spiral out of control any longer.

In the meantime, I remember that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.  Attempting to take control of uncontrollable circumstances is a surefire way to begin that journey towards insanity, and I'm not really crazy about going there just yet.  May I accept what I can't change, change what I can, discern the difference, and do my best to share the news with as many people as I can.  After all, oftentimes those collisions that we experience aren't necessarily caused by us, they may be caused by someone else, losing control...or just flailing around actually living under the delusion that they actually had control to begin with.

The "Don'ts" of Small Groups

Been a little bit since I posted as I've been pretty busy the last few weeks.  I wanted to get on and at least post a little something.

I'm taking a Discipleship in Community class and we're talking a lot about small groups.  One of our assignments for this week involved reading a book by Cloud and Townsend on small groups.  For those of you unfamiliar with Cloud and Townsend, they are the authors of the book "Boundaries."

In the midst of reading this book as well as another book, we have had to answer a number of questions on a worksheet.  Among the questions was this, "You are the writers for David Letterman. Come up with your top 10 ways to kill group discussion."

I read my Top 10 list to my wife and she thought that I should post it here.  Feel free to comment if you have others to add to this, it certainly isn't exhaustive, but I did my best to be true and funny.

10. Insult people and tell them that their answers are stupid.

9. Let people think that you, the leader,  have it all together.

8. Use examples of hurts that people might have and say, "But I'm sure none of you guys are that screwed up!"

7. Let every response to a question that you are asked end with the word, "Duh!"

6. Continually compare your small group members in an unfavorable way to people that you "used to know."

5. Every time someone begins to get into deep sharing, cut them off and tell them, "Sorry, we're running out of time."

4. Create an environment of judging by encouraging members to scold and rebuke each other.

3. Put people on the spot by asking them personal and embarrassing questions that no one would want to answer in public.

2. Break the confidence of the people within your group...over and over again.

1. Make every discussion all about you, after all, you are the leader.

Let me know what you think!

My Father

All of us have a story, I am no different and neither is my father.  As I reflect on this Father's Day, I can't help but think about my own father.  In his nearly 70 years, he has been through an awful lot.  While he is human and has made his share of mistakes, I am so grateful for what he and my mom taught me and how they raised me.  I am the man that I am today because of the sacrifices that my parents made for me and on this Father's Day, I am grateful for my father, Tony Gibson.

My father grew up in Brooklyn in the 1950's and when he was a teenager, his father left due to alcoholism.  That event played such a significant event in his life that he eventually committed his life to ministry and focused on helping others who were impacted by addiction.  He used his own experience to help others.

When I was young, I would stand at the door of the church after the Sunday morning church service, right next to Dad, shaking people's hands as they walked out.  More than one person joked about me being the "little pastor."  Turns out that they were more right than they probably realized.  Although I fought hard against the call of God on my life, I eventually conceded to the fact that this was what I was made for, just like my father before me.

The church wasn't always a kind place to my dad.  He experienced more than a little bit of heartache through the years at the hands of well-meaning people within the church.  Yet he always continued to give and serve, seeing the best in people when nobody else was willing to do so.  He showed grace to those who many had given up on.  When he retired, he left a trail of lives that had been touched and changed because of the impact and influence that he had had on them.

That retirement came in November 2010 for him and my mom, and in a matter of months, they were handed more change than even change junkies might be able to handle.  Dad lost his church, his career, his home, and his health.  Mom had had health issues over the years but it was topped off in January 2011 with the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.  Eventually, Mom lost her battle with cancer and Dad lost her too.  All the plans that they had made of retiring and spending time with their grandchildren were but a mist, disappearing into the clouds of a new day.

Despite all that he went through, I still think Dad did the best that he could.  I know that he is far from perfect.  He didn't always excel as a father, a husband, and a pastor, but he did his best.  The problem with our culture and society is that people aren't judged for how they do with what they have been given, they're judged in comparison to everyone else.  A lot of people are going to fall pretty short when that kind of comparison happens.  Dad has done the best with what he's been given, which hasn't always been a lot along the way.

I have nothing but love for my father.  He has left a legacy that he can see in his grandchildren.  They love him and I love him.  There are plenty of people in this world who haven't been blessed with good fathers, I am thankful for the gift of a father that I have been given.

I don't know what kind of father you have or had.  Maybe you were as blessed as I have been, or maybe not.  I know that I have another Father who is perfect, who never fails.  He's the same Father that my dad has as well.  He's always there, always listening, and always forgiving.  Any time that I try to compare myself with someone, I remind myself that I will always fall short in comparison to the greatest Father of all time.

On this Father's Day, take time to remember your dad.  If he's still alive, give him a call and let him know how much you love him.  Thank him.  If things haven't been good between you, take the time to look for restitution and redemption.  I have learned a lot from my dad and I have done what I can to pass those things on to my kids.  I've done my best to learn from successes and failures, because when we don't learn from failures, we may be destined to repeat them.

I am a grateful son and an adequate father.  My hope and prayer is that my children know that I love them and would do anything for them.  I hope and pray that they might see beyond me and my failures to another Father who will not disappoint them the way that I inevitably will.  I hope and pray that they can pass on the good things that I've taught them and learn from my mistakes, so that they too can invest in and love their own kids.

Fatherhood is not for the easily wearied, it's not an easy road.  I am so thankful today for my father.  I love you, Dad.

What's Going On?

At the risk of sounding like an old man, I write this post.  It’s kind of funny what sparks ideas and thoughts in my head.  Monday morning, I was simply perusing the movie times to see if I would be able to work out going to see “The Avengers” with a friend this week.  As much of a movie fan that I am, with three kids and nearing the end of my seminary education, I just don’t get to the theater as often as I would like.  Of course, if you don’t have the money to go to the “big screen,” you can wait a few months and catch it on DVD or Blu-Ray.

I was pretty disappointed to see that the movie times were not really conducive to someone who has little kids or a job that they need to get to in the morning.  My ranting on Facebook turned into a dialogue that really got me thinking about who is being targeted by Hollywood and the entertainment industry in general.  It seems that I am not really the one being targeted by this industry.

There are obviously the emotional elements that come with the realization that  one has moved past the targeted age range of a specific industry, but I don’t really think that was what was bothering me.  A friend made a valid comment on Facebook that,

It really got me thinking about the progression of the entertainment industry and where it has come from since its inception so many years ago.  We've come a long way, possibly in the wrong direction since some of the great music and movies of yesteryear.  I always find it interesting and encouraging to see the next generation embrace the classic rock of the 1960's that was quality.  There was some good acoustic rock that came out in the 1970's to counteract the disco movement.  Of course, there were even groups like KISS that embraced the disco movement, but we won't go there.

I'm not sure when it happened, but somehow, shock value took the place of actual value.  Carole King, Joni Mitchell, and Shawn Colvin were replaced by the likes of Lady Gaga, Rihanna, and Nicki Minaj.  While some of the latter may be talented, it seems like they've set aside their talent for the things that seem to sell.  Have you seen videos of Lady Gaga before she got big?  When you strip away some of the glitz, she's got some talent.

Somehow, we've got all of these tools and instead of using them to enhance our creativity and a gifting, we use them to replace or overshadow them.  Seriously, have we been "Auto Tuned" to death?  Have you seen the latest Mr. Rogers Auto Tune extravaganza?  How about Antoine Dodson?  Are we tired of music that says nothing, put together with simplistic lyrics?  Have we had enough of a lack of creativity?

Then there's movies.  I was remarking to someone today that there are some classic movies out there that didn't have tons of special effects but their stories were phenomenal, with the ability to grip the viewer from the first moment on.  Instead of using special effects as the main gist of the movie and the plot, we need to use them to enhance the story and plot, not replace it.

It seems like this is nothing new though.  What are the first programs that get cut in schools when there is a budget crisis?  The arts.  We take away music classes and art classes, stripping away the opportunity for the next generation to use and enhance their creativity.  We don't create free and creative thinkers, we create robots who will strive to do things that will make them money.  While it might seem like money might make the world go 'round, it certainly doesn't solve the problems of the world.  Creative thinkers are the ones who turn the dreams of today into the realities of tomorrow.

While many musicians have protested the ability of music to be shared and stolen via the internet, it may have been one of the greatest things to spark our creativity.  No longer do artists need big recording contracts to get ahead.  With a few thousand bucks, they can put together a recording to get their name out there via the internet.  Some of the best new artists are the ones who have stripped away a lot of the fancy tools in favor of a more organic sound.

Check out John Mayer's new album, inspired by the Laurel Canyon artists of the 60's and 70's.  Have you heard The Civil Wars?  Mumford and Sons?  Midlake?  There's some quality music coming down the pike, and it's not all coming from the big name companies.  Some of the best stuff actually started as independent releases.  Go find any college town and you will find some quality music.  R.E.M., the Indigo Girls, Dave Matthews Band, they all started out playing to college audiences.  How far they have come.

The other day, I loaded my CD player for dinner (yes, some people still use CD players).  I thought to myself, what do I need to expose my kids to?  What did I choose?  Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, and Stevie Wonder.  If my kids reach middle school without being schooled in quality music, shame on me.

Sure, there are plenty of more important things that I need to instill in my children, but to me, creativity breeds creativity.  The opposite is probably true as well.  Some of the greatest musical moments that I have had in my own life have come after sitting through a concert that moved me and inspired me to write something that might inspire as well.

I refuse to build up the next generation in ignorance of what quality and creativity are all about.  I guess I've been pretty slack in this, but I have begun to see what happens when my kids hear music.  They've been going around singing a song from the latest Muppets movie, and if I'm around, I will generally join in.  It seems pretty cool to me that we've introduced a new generation to the Muppets.

There are plenty of things that our kids can learn from school, but there are certain things that they might only learn from us.  If arts and music gets cut in school, I want to be the one to teach those things to my kids.  They might not seem so important to you, but to me, they are what will breed the changes of tomorrow.  I think I need to go cue up some Marvin Gaye so I can tell my kids what's going on!

More Thoughts on Membership

After my last post on membership, a friend brought up some questions that really got me thinking more about the idea of membership.  So, I wanted to address some of her questions from my standpoint.  I know that I won't answer them exactly, so I won't necessarily list the questions out.  The questions dealt with where church membership requirements come from, were they created by man or by God?  The questions also addressed the participation in church activities for those who are not members of that specific body.

Becoming a member of a church with a simple piece of paper attesting to it is certainly man's requirement.  It's something that we have created to give a more clear sign and symbol of what we see in Scripture.  The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the God of covenants, He has made and makes promises with covenants.

I do not have space in this post to go into a long and detailed explanation of covenants, but an overview is essential.  If we look throughout the Old Testament, we see the covenants that God made with His people.  He promised them that He would watch over them and care for them, that He would set them apart from other nations.  To Abraham He promised that all peoples would be blessed through him.

Some of the covenants that God made with His people were one-sided, there was nothing required from them.  But there were other covenants that were made that were mutual, covenants that were conditional, under which the covenant would be voided should the terms not be followed.  Whenever covenants were entered into between people and God or people and each other, there was generally a blood requirement, blood needed to be shed in order that the covenant would be signed and sealed.

Covenants seem to be an antiquated idea in our society, we don't hear of them often.  We talk of contracts and agreements, but just the mere sound of those words makes it seem a bit formal with no relational aspect to them at all.  Covenants were things that were to be taken seriously and when we continue to enter into covenants, we should take them as seriously as they were in Old Testament times.

I say all this because, while the requirement of church membership is man-made, this requirement ties into the idea of the biblical covenant, entering into an agreement between us and God.  We join with Christ to be a part of his work on the earth, agreeing to be in partnership with Him, through the power of the Holy Spirit.  With this, there is an accountability required, which is why churches have established membership.  We enter into covenant with God and each other in order that we can keep each other accountable, to hold each other to what we are called to as members of the body of Christ.  Paul speaks of this in 1 Corinthians and Ephesians, the idea of a body with many members.

When we are baptized, whether as infants or as adults, we enter into a covenant with God.  Infant baptism is a sign and symbol of the fact that we are set apart, called by God, not in and of ourselves, but before we have done anything.  Adult baptism is a public profession of faith, acknowledging that we have been called by God to be a part of His family.  We enter into the family of God and just like our earthly families, we might not have contracts or membership forms, we know that there are still requirements of us to be a part of our family.

Herein lies the difficulty: how do we become members of an organization, a club, or a church without having some kind of membership requirements?  Like any relationship, we expect it to be two-sided.  If we were to join a club and feel that we were not getting the benefits of membership, we might either quit the club or simply stay a part of it for status sake.  But church should not be like this, we join not so that we can tell people that we are a part of it, but so that we can have a group of people who walk with us, holding us accountable to our covenant and commitment, encouraging us, praying for us, teaching us, and learning from us as we journey through life.

At the same time, if a church does not feel that members are holding to the requirements that they are called to uphold as members, what do they do?  Many churches differ.  Some remove members who no longer contribute or attend from their rolls.  Other churches allow members to stay on their rolls regardless of their status, giving an unclear picture of the make-up of a church.  While this may be a denominational thing, it is also fairly diverse on a church by church basis.  While I believe that each body needs to determine what works best for them, it seems fairly insincere to beef up membership rolls with people who don't positively contribute to the overall health and advancement of the body of Christ.

The idea of membership as it pertains to participation in certain church activities, most likely things such as the sacraments, is a different questions.  Are we united through Jesus Christ regardless of our denominational affiliation?  My general answer to that question is, "yes."  My non-general answer is, "it depends."  More and more, churches have begun to put statements of faith on their websites in order to explain the specific things that they believe.  Unfortunately, this practice can easily be transformed into legalistic lists, but I certainly don't think this is always the case.  It is essential to hold to convictions and to be able to specifically explain what you believe and why you believe it.  The danger is not falling into the trap of listing everything that you don't agree with rather than making specific statements of what you do believe.

Some denominations would get specific by listing the things that they would consider to be essentials and non-essentials.  The Evangelical Presbyterian Church has as its motto, "In essentials...unity, in non-essentials...liberty, in all things...charity."  This seems to be a fairly good motto to embrace as long as we distinguish the things that are essential and non-essential to us.  We need to lay those out, by ourselves, working out our salvation with fear and trembling.  If we are unsure, we must search the Scriptures rather than simply take someone else's word.  Belief may involve faith, but it certainly does not mean blind belief without struggling and wrestling to come up with answers.  Contrary to popular belief, faith can be cerebral.

Do denominations and membership within them pull us away from the specific mission and purpose of God's Church?  Sadly, I think this is becoming the case more and more.  Instead of seeking to reach a world who needs to understand and know the love of Jesus Christ, we bicker and argue and spend significant amounts of time debating things that should be essential beliefs and trying to convince others of things that are non-essentials.  These conversations are important, if they are indeed conversations, but we need not let them displace our true calling to make disciples of all people.  If we are to make disciples of all people, we need to be able to articulate our beliefs, so this gets kind of sticky.  It really becomes essential for us to know which things fall into essentials and which things fall into non-essentials and then be ready to move on from there, holding loosely to the things which should be held loosely and holding firmly to those which should be held with firmness.

I'm still wrestling through so much of this.  Membership to a church is something that is not specifically stated within Scripture, but it is certainly implied, at least the idea of being a part of God's Church as well as being held accountable to standards.  We cannot think that we will successfully journey through this life as individuals with no help or accountability.  If we think that we are capable of being islands, fulfilling all of our own needs, we are sadly mistaken.  Membership is a mad-made concept while covenant is a God-made concept.  Frankly, membership is a softer notion than a covenant, and we really should enter into our relationships with covenants, especially our relationships with the body of Christ on the earth.

I don't claim to hold the corner on the market with these ideas, but I have continually wrestled with them.  Feel free to question my thoughts, there may be some that I have not thought through as well as others.  I hope and pray that I can hold loosely to things that are non-essentials and yet be firmly convinced of my convictions.  May we all seek to grow more in wisdom and knowledge, but  may we never lose sight of the fact that wisdom and knowledge without practice is nothing more than good ideas without any implementation.