Christopher Drury

The Greatest Show on Earth: Part 2

2013-04-12T14:38:00.001-04:00

In this post I wish to examine a concept that Jesus discussed more than any other topic... "The Kingdom". One of the reasons I believe that a "hands on" application to the Christian faith is foreign to most our culture is a lack of education. There is a misconception (one that I have posted about multiple times) among many people that we should simply "believe" in Jesus. These individuals believe and/or teach that to be a "Christian" means to adopt the correct "beliefs" and attend the right places on Sunday mornings and avoid certain places or activities (which varies between denominations) during the week. This could not be further from the truths that are evident in the scriptures. In fact the early church did not even call themselves "Christians". The term "Christian" was first used as a mocking term in the book of Acts and it means "little Christ's". The term "Christian" in our modern context I believe could be somewhat damaging because in our culture we have associated it with a belief system... and nothing more. In reality there was so much more to the early church than just a system of beliefs.

The early church referred to themselves as "Followers of The Way", and I believe this title and those like it (Followers of Christ, Disciples, Disciples of Christ, etc.) are a much more lucid depiction of what the early church was trying to develop. The early church believed that we were to be followers of a certain way of life that Jesus both displayed and taught (This way of life is described in the verses below). This in fact was "The Kingdom" that Jesus constantly referred too. Jesus would often communicate to his disciples that "The Kingdom is here" just before he healed or ministered to someone in need. They were just to blind to see this "kingdom" because in their minds they believed that "their messiah" was supposed to come and overthrow the "kingdom of Rome" and return possession of the land to the Jews. Jesus however, came and presented a "New Kingdom"; and specifically this "Kingdom" was a way of life that operated differently than any kingdom in our world. This "Kingdom" was inclusive to all who believed and wished to follow the way of Jesus. I believe in our culture we are very confused as to what it means to follow Jesus because we have been misguided in our education of what it looks like. I believe that the way of Jesus, "His Kingdom" can be summed up in the application of these two passages of scripture.

1 Corinthians 13: 4-7 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Galations 5:22-2322 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

That means that Following Jesus has nothing to do with elaborate buildings, and extravagant worship services. It means that we learn to live the way described in these two passages, and teach others to do the same. It means that we are grateful for grace and we gracefully give to those around us.

This is NOT to say that there is no heaven and that Jesus will not come back one day and restore our world. I believe he will return one day and restore our world (AMEN)! However, as his followers or the "Body of Christ" (which means that we are his presence until he returns) we are charged with bringing this "Kingdom of Heaven" in our present reality and communities both here and now!

So the question is; are you a "christian" (in our cultural context simply a believer) or are you a disciple (a follower of His way of life)? The time for this question to be asked is both now and often my friends.

-For the Kingdom

The Greatest Show on Earth: Part 1

2013-03-19T12:26:00.000-04:00

This is Bullshit! The opening statement for this post is harsh, but so is the situation at hand. I adore the church (at least what it should be), and I am very passionate about its health and presence in our world. However, every week I am disgusted with the traitor that stands in her stead. I am sick of walking on egg shells when the western church is on life support and something needs to be done or at minimum communicated.

For the life of me I cannot find the scriptures that supports ecclesia (Greek word for church) being a production! Nor can I find any text in the New Testament that supports the way of Jesus being centered around a location. Yet, in my culture (the Bible Belt) that is the majority of the church's focus and/or goal.

I read the account of Jesus turning tables and fashioning a whip (and using it) in the temple because it was turned into a business and it is evident that we have stumbled into the same pit. I cannot help but think, that if Jesus walked into one of our expensive buildings with our fancy productions done in His name; He would probably find some rope and start whoopin' some ass! (John Ch. 2 13-22)

A good friend of mine informed me this week that a local mega church has raised $2,000,000 in two weeks for their upcoming multi-million dollar facility. This infuriated me! Now this church is not alone in their quest to build bigger and more elaborate worship centers. We have many churches in the area who have the exact same goal. However, it is a known fact that our city has a growing homeless population (currently over 800 people) and our county has no homeless shelters, warming centers, or soup kitchens! Not even one! Why the hell our we building a theater when Jesus mandated our focus to be the poor?

In the Bible Belt we have churches literally building overpasses as entrances to their sanctuaries in some of America's poorest cities. Hey, I guess the homeless at least have a new bridge to sleep under right? We have churches who have purchased professional football stadiums and converted them to worship centers and their electric bills are $1,000,000 dollars per month. We have church plants that require $100,000-$1,000,000 as a yearly operating budget before they even launch! This is just the protestants! If we consider that the catholic church alone has enough money to completely abolish world hunger it should make us angry. If we combine the wealth of both the protestants and the catholic church we could obliterate poverty world wide!

Why the hell haven't we done it? Why the hell are we waiting on the government to do it for us or expecting the poor to take care of themselves? Did Jesus not command us to care for the poor? Did he not say in Matthew 25 that we will be judged by whether or not we cared for the poor individually?

What's worse is the world knows it is clearly wrong. The world looks at the church and they see our hypocrisy every time a mega church is constructed or sought after. These people who are not active participants in worship, or maybe even nonbelievers have a more biblical understanding of church than those who frequent church services. Based on my research I believe Jesus would most likely feel the same.

This series of post will examine the history and bad theology that is feeding this beast. This post may be one more shovel full of dirt tossed from my careers grave, but the church is at 6 feet and if something is not done soon we will only have regrets and memories of "The Greatest Show on Earth".

-For The Kingdom

When Rubber Meets the Road

2013-03-04T18:04:00.003-05:00

I am no longer going to apologize for my inconsistent posts. The truth is that I have been trying to maintain my sanity while going through the most painful event of my life...and truthfully it is only getting worse. So I do not want to promise regularity when I am in the middle of instability. However, I have to confess a recent self realization that has literally brought me to tears.

I am a fraud.

It is painful to type and has taken me far too long to recognize. This cancer has gone undetected in the guise of my charity and "good theology". Until recently I was under the impression that I had a pretty good handle on the Gospel. After all; I made some major sacrifices when I jumped head first into this emerging "missional movement" thing, and I am leading a community of people who are literally transforming the methodology of church planting. This delusional reasoning was the source of my ignorance, excuse and my offense.

Without going into great detail (which would humiliate all parties involved) all that can be conveyed is that I was deeply betrayed. Not the kind of betrayal that breaks trust...the kind of deception that breaks hearts and alters ones faith in humanity. During this struggle I had forgotten the core principals of everything I believe to be essential in following Christ. In these moments Jesus offers us the ability to display His Kingdom in a way that is both attractive and unnatural. Regrettably, despite what I "believe" I have been far from gracious, forgiving, and merciful when faced with my current situation.

What is worse is that I literally felt entitled to my outbursts of anger and harsh words which are so diametrically opposed to The Way of Jesus. Frankly, part of me still feels my behavior is at minimum "understandable" and now that I have identified this false sense of entitlement it sickens me. As critical as I can be of the American Church I must admit that I too... am a hypocrite.

The point I wish to make is that when the rubber meets the road we have to ask ourselves; "Is this not the kind of moment in which Jesus instructed us to be different?". Is "loving your enemy" just a nice concept or is it the mark of a true disciple and the blueprint for bringing His Kingdom to earth?

I am a disciple of Christ and I don't promote labels but if I had to align with any denomination's theology it would be the Anabaptist. This means that I believe that literally loving an enemy is an integral part of being a follower of Christ and is not exclusive to the false concept of "mature Christians". I believe that an eye for an eye makes the world blind. I believe that we should literally bless those who hate us and pray for those who persecute us. I believe in the power of forgiveness and do not believe in the erroneous practice of "just retribution", but what am I DOING with my system of beliefs?

When our education is given an opportunity for application how do we respond? Isn't it meaningless at best if our response is not in direct correlation with our beliefs? The book of James addresses the symbiotic nature of faith and practice by saying...

But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.- James 2:18 ESV

So in my recent self examination I am left with a choice. Do I chose to respond in the way that I (a deprave sinner) feel is just? Or do I humble myself as someone who believes in the power of a greater kingdom and act accordingly?

As members of the body of Christ we have the ability to live out His Kingdom of unconditional love, mercy and forgiveness. Not on our own because of our sinful nature but with God's providence. However, the first step in solving a problem is admitting you have one, and this is my confession.

For The Kingdom,

The Web We Weave

2012-10-18T01:54:00.001-04:00

I sincerely apologize that my blogs have not published persistently in the recent months. This has been due to a formidable measure of stress that I have accrued during a grievous era in my life. That time has both fortunately (oddly enough) and unfortunately come to a painful termination. I have had tremendous companions who carried me through this time of great suffering from the beginning and new friends as well who have joined me in grieving and counsel from the moment of their entrance into my life's story. I am eternally in their debt for their contribution to my well being!

One of these friends (who will remain anonymous, as he has never allowed positive recognition for his contributions), has been vital in guiding me from the depths of my own despair. Recently this man and I packed up our personal effects and journeyed to North Carolina to empty our troubles over the vast beauty of the Smokey Mountains. Even though I am in ministry, those who know me are well aware that I am a naturally cautious person and a bit of a skeptic. However, these mountains contain something quite spiritual that cleanses wounds and conceals scars in a way that I never thought possible.

Feeling rejuvenated after observing the splendor of the glorious geography and feeling more alive than I have in years; we decided to take in some of the local night life. English pubs scatter the countryside and by my own personal assessment there are few things that go better with good company than a crafted pint of ale. While we were searching for an interesting location to enjoy a craft beer I concocted a plan that I had never thought of doing in the past. I suddenly realized that when traveling there is a rare opportunity that few people take advantage of.....anonymity. I have always had the ability to convincingly mimic foreign accents on command. So upon this realization the framework for a good time was beginning to emerge. We created a game. The rule was that if I could carry the night through without anyone suspecting my origins being a farce than my beer would be payed for....I do not think I have ever had a better performance (or a better motivation).

I posses a certain fondness of my Irish heritage. I would also dare say that an Irish dialect is my best impression. This coupled with my attire for the evening had limitless potential (see photo). So on this fall evening my name was Murph O'Connell and I was visiting The Smokey Mountains from Dublin, Ireland. To the detriment of my humility not one person in the pub doubted my being a native Irishman for a second! Also to my surprise I was now the life of the party. Popularity is not something that usually occurs naturally for me. I have always enjoyed a good time and will go with the flow of an extrovert, but I have never been the catalyst for "fun". This night was so foreign to me because people were laughing and genuinely interested with my story (which I convincingly made up as the night progressed). My fun however, came to a screeching halt once the victims of my facade explained that their origins were from the town I currently take residence in (which happens to be six hours away), and they will be returning to my/their city in a few months. My performance I fear will soon come full circle and metaphorically bite my buttocks!

My colleague thought this was quite humorous, but being that I had access to free beer distracted me from his enjoyment of my self inflicted predicament. I mean the odds of these people being from Beaufort SC had to be in the millions, but I digress. As we were laughing about the events that had taken place just moments before I thought of a relevant contrast to this story. The truth is that if and when I encounter these people again there will be a fair amount of explaining to do. They may find my acts slightly, or even extremely humorous, but even so I would have been disingenuous with my new friends and nothing is more deplorable or harmful to building community with others then false pretense. If you contrast this thought with the widespread misconception of what it actually means to follow Jesus there are many similarities.

Those of us who have a missional mindset of "Church"; whether that be missional communities or intentional communities are trying to convey something to the public. We are trying to confess our lie that we continued to spread for years around the world. In my own life the lie of what "church" currently is was a lie that I personally nurtured for nearly a decade. It took me years to realize that we have essentially given the church so much "relevance" that it looks nothing like her. Over time we have assimilated different items of entertainment in order to attract attention and have done so quite well over several hundred years. These things, for the most part are innocent and have the purest of intentions. However, what happens when we examine the gospels and the Church found in the book of Acts and discover that how we worship looks nothing like the church found in the scriptures? As Followers of Christ those of us who are missional are attempting to embrace something that is both ancient and fresh.

Recently a new friend of mine (who I appreciate immensely), openly confessed several questions that have been plaguing her thoughts about Christianity. As we slowly began to discuss and then dissect her concerns I noticed that she was being misinformed about what it meant to "be" the Church. I pointed out that her concerns about Christianity had nothing to do with following Jesus, but were erupting from theologies and dogmas that are not found in the original language and/or proper context of scripture. I communicated the obvious axiom that to some degree these dogmas were being forced on her to adopt. We talked for quite some time and I explained to her that I believe those things have actually led Christians away from the beauty of following Christ and are hindering individuals from joining The Way of Jesus. I cannot speak for her, but I believe that at the end of our conversation she had a far deeper understanding of what it means to actually follow Jesus or at the minimum a more sensible alternative to "church".

I believe that as The Church it is necessary for us to admit our sins to the world. Buildings, rock bands, choirs, concerts, dramas, robes, golden alters, are unquestionably fun and remarkably beautiful! However, if they remotely distract from assisting the destitute and broken and if these additions are merely used to entertain and attract the masses than our methods must be labeled as erroneous. As a result of our lack of humility there are millions of people who are misinformed about the true majesty of The Kingdom and are believing and inadvertently nurturing a massive lie!

It is time for the truth to emerge. It is time for humility from all of us who are leading the church. It is time to rediscover our origins. It is time to remove the silly accents and be the church Jesus wants and believes we can be.

-For The Kingdom

All You Need is Love: The Only Accurate Scorecard for The Church

2012-05-30T17:18:00.003-04:00

(The following is a Chromatic walk down from the modular mixolydian to ionian in the key of D)

DA DA DA DA DA.

Only those who are passionate about music theory will comprehend the content of the previous caption, but I digress.

"All You Need is Love" is one of my favorite songs to both perform and listen to. The reason for my adoration of this song is not the arrangement. My musical appreciation in this instance is rather philosophical. John Lennon was a man who could not have been farther from evangelicalism. Yet this song could not be closer to capturing the nature of The Kingdom of God with the philosophy Lennon injected into the lyrics.

The axiom found in this classic piece of music is apparent in the scriptures and is what initially attracted me to join the "missional" church movement and in sequence distance myself from the "attractional" church model. One must not misunderstand, I am over joyed I made this transition and could never see myself returning to the latter. My reasoning is that I am personally exhausted and at times disgusted with anything resembling an "attractional" (come, see, sit, never take action unless your a minister, compare, compete, absorb, and support our fancy show style) church. However, In my zeal of resurrecting the missional church described in Acts I have discovered a well hidden trap that has recently been exposed by God's intervention due to recent events.

I realized that in my journey of becoming missional I was dangerously close to practicing and teaching a works based theology in our church (Commission). Works, although crucial in the context of displaying and revealing our faith (James 2:18, Matthew 25: 31-46), is not what defines it. Rather it is evidence of something much more sacred. In my experience the source of our good work as the church is easily forgotten and rarely discussed in missional circles. This source is an apparent theme of The Kingdom of God and is even listed as a requirement in the life of EVERY disciple. This week I was lucky enough to get my hands on a book written by Gregory Boyd ( The Myth of a Christian Nation) which reminded me of this foundational truth.

What distinguishes a true follower of Christ is not charity, but rather the catalyst that will inevitably manifest it, and that defining characteristic is LOVE. 1 Corinthians 13 tells us that we can give everything we own to the poor but if this selflessness is not a direct motivation of Jesus' love assimilating into our every action, than our charity is static. This is because scripture tells us that Jesus cares far more about the origin of our decisions than the actions that transpire from it. With this knowledge I humbly realized something.... I have failed yet again as a christian and a leader of our church plant.

In using love as a litmus test, I realized that our foundation as a community of believers was flawed. Do not misunderstand our community has done amazing things since its inception. 100% of Commission's resources and tithes go directly into aiding our city and not to our institution. However, I have never given any consideration in altering our hearts while designing a different approach to "ecclesia" (church). In personal reflection I realized that both individually and in many cases corporately we have deteriorated, or in a more relevant term ..."FAIL".

In the scriptures love is clearly what separates The Kingdom of God from the Kingdom of man. In fact, Jesus says the entirety of the law hangs on these two commandments "loving God and loving our neighbor (the Koine Greek defines neighbor as everyone we have contact with). This is how we effectively plant the seeds which will grow the Kingdom of God. Which is important to remember because the "Kingdom of God" is what Jesus discussed more than any other topic.

So in closing we are to first love God and everyone unconditionally, selflessly, humbly, sacrificially, constantly, and even dangerously the way Christ loves us and out of that love charity will ultimately emerge. If the DNA of our decisions is anything contrary to Christ's love than we have ultimately failed and our extinction in any culture is both certain, and imminent.

-For The Kingdom

Obama on Gay Marriage: The Defecation Hits the Oscillation

2012-05-16T14:27:00.000-04:00

We all have been bombarded with negative or positive responses to Obama's public profession of his support to the LGBT community. As a result the American church is divided again over a political issue. Messages of hate and disdain from both perspectives concerning this topic are flooding the streets and the digital highway. As a result, I would like a moment to share my opinion on the matter and in so doing hopefully bring unity to a small portion of the church who cannot seem to agree on this subject.

Before I continue I should probably state that I believe an individual has the right to NOT condone gay marriage, but I AM also an advocate for it's legalization. The fact that I am stating this may have ruined what little respect I have from the conservative community, but I am at a point in my life where I am tired of hiding what I believe because of social crucifixion. I committed career suicide in ministry a couple of years ago so I am no longer afraid of the criticism, but I do hope that those reading this blog would take a moment to read the entire post and at least consider what I am saying as a Christian, an American, and a fellow human being.

My opinion on whether gay marriage is a sin or not is irrelevant because my argument derives from America's constitution. The separation of church and state is ignored among the conservative right (somewhat confusing considering their title) and is integral to the construction of our political system. Contrary to the opinion of many conservatives this country was founded to protect individual religious freedoms and the personal pursuit of happiness. Meaning, those who reside within the boundaries of our constitutions influence have the right to do whatever they want as long as it does not restrict others who are doing the same.

From a historical platform marriage was never solely a Christian practice, nor was it subjugated by the government until religions were adopted politically. During the Old Testament, and the time of the early church the government had no authority in ordaining marriage; that was God's department. So If evangelicals believe that marriage is only intended to be between a man and a woman and God is the only one who can ordain such a significant relationship, than what can national legalization do to oppose this understanding of marriage? In your mind does God bind souls together or is it sanctioned by a piece of paper? Meaning ones understanding of marriage as a mere legal process in itself violates the very beauty of it's existence.

Just because something is legalized does not mean it has to be condoned by everyone. Take pornography as an example: it is both legal and scripturally controversial, but people have the right to support an industry that most Christians oppose (even though many are private supporters). Many evangelicals believe that any intake of alcohol is sinful but it's consumption is still legalized. Just because the government gives freedoms to it's population does not mean that it has to be accepted by everyone or any religion. We all have the right to accept, promote, condone, or condemn any practice and if a group is theologically and/or philosophically opposed to any act that is virtually harmless than it is that groups responsibility to assimilate those specific ideals into culture not the governments to restrict. In the same respect the government has NO right to tell any church that it should accept or officiate gay marriage. Just as it is a homosexuals freedom to be legally married it is an evangelicals right to not accept or promote it. This is what it means to have an effective separation of church and state. Both influences are meant to function as autonomous entities in our country.

Most conservatives argue that gay marriage will violate its sanctity, but realistically Christians are already doing a pretty good job of this. LGBT's have the right to be married just as much as Christians have the right to be divorced. Especially when statistically divorce rates are higher in the evangelical community than in the non Christian population. LBGT'S have the right to be legally married just as much as evangelicals have the legal right to be promiscuous before matrimony or commit adultery after it.

I am confused as to why this was ever a major debate from a constitutional or theological standpoint. In fact Jesus never even discusses homosexuality... not once! The son of God never mentioned homosexuality, but He did mention multiple times the imperative responsibility of loving and accepting others exactly how they are. After all, He does this to all who believe in Him and that is crucial to remember during this national controversy.

I believe in an individuals freedoms and their pursuit of happiness as long as it does not effect others doing the same. Although others may disagree this country was not established as a theocracy, it is in fact a democracy. Historically this is a positive thing because when Christianity has obtained political power and influence tragedy inevitably flows in it's wake. Nero, Calvin's punishments, The Crusades, slavery, witch trials, segregated schools, segregated voting, and segregated marriage all originated when Christianity was used to achieve some form of power. In fact Christianity was meant to oppose power. Christianity was meant to express God's love personally not politically and the government is not responsible for installing any moral interpretation of a religion especially when those institutions do not pay taxes.

-For The Kingdom

Righteous Anger

2012-05-09T14:53:00.002-04:00

Have you ever tried to repress your anger only to find that you explode and find yourself looking just a tad bit ridiculous? Personally this topic is very exposing for me, because though I hide it well I suffer from varying degrees of anger and anxiety problems. Many of us have been told that anger is a sin. Many of us can recollect being instructed to follow certain breathing routines or counting procedures to calm down or to temporarily bury our anger. My question to my audience is this; have these anger management techniques ever really solved anything, or have they simply momentarily suppressed an oncoming fit of rage?

I know that for me if I am not cautious the smallest things will set me off and/or ruin my day. If you are acquainted with me you would know that I have an extremely organized manner in which I conduct my day, and if one thing (no matter how trivial) interferes with my schedule I tend to get extremely angry. Because of this my wife jokingly calls me "Hulk" and sadly this trait must be genetic because we refer to my youngest son as "Bruce" because he conducts himself in the exact manner when presented with an inconvenience. Speaking of our green friend last week I was privileged to be at "The Avengers" premiere and while watching "The Hulk" learn to control his unlimited power I was reminded of unpopular but crucial truths in the scriptures concerning anger. (SPOILER ALERT)

Halfway into the movie we see that "Bruce Banner" still has not been able to control "The Hulk". This has been an ongoing battle for Banner and has caused him to focus all of his attention on suppressing his rage and hiding his potential. In the film Bruce Banner cannot influence the Hulk to do anything productive until he accepts that he is angry. He chooses to no longer fight the rage inside of him and channels his anger to save the world. Once he does this he proves to be the most powerful player in "The Avengers" team and can take down alien warships with a single blow. He even tosses an immortal around like a child's plaything! What is amazing about Banner is that he uses his anger for something meaningful and important. He focuses his frustration to meet a critical need. We can utilize this comic book story and use it as imagery when reading some key verses and stories in the scriptures.

There are many times in the Old Testament that we clearly see God The Father is indeed angry (to say the least). In both the book of Psalms and Ephesians we are advised "not to sin in our anger", meaning that anger is not the sin but the reactions while one is consumed with it are sinful. Finally perhaps the most valuable defense for righteous anger is the story of Jesus in the temple. The son of God gets angry enough to make a whip and violently drive religious leaders from the temple complex! This story seems to contradict other passages. For example it opposes the verse when Jesus said "if you are angry with your brother you have already committed murder. " So we know that anger is a natural emotion and according to the text is not sinful in itself. Science also tells us that anger should not be ignored less it becomes unhealthy, however while angered we can conduct ourselves sinfully... so what do we do?

In order to prevent angers transformation from emotion to sin the most important thing to remember is our own perspectives and our decisions in responding to anger. We are justified in being angry with a bad situation or a terrible injustice, but not with the person that caused it. One may remember in these circumstances the old saying "dislike the sin but love the sinner". Anger should be present when observing things like corruption, genocide, and greed. According to scripture these things anger God Himself and I have found that when I am angry about small trivial things it is an indication that I am not angry enough about God's problems with the world. Secondly there is only one time where we see Jesus getting angered enough to become violent and that is when dealing with corruption in "The Church". This makes perfect sense in the macro view of the scope of this topic. Remember that Jesus was willing to do anything to establish His church including being unjustly tortured and executed in The Church's place. If Jesus was willing to pay the ultimate price for both the penance of mankind and the birth of His church, why would he not be angered when people are soiling His legacy?

In closing I believe it is time for "The Church" to be angry. Most of us see the corruption in Western church and we have had enough! Personally I think that God has had enough and it is time for The Church to get furious, but in the proper manner. Anger without action is indifference which is equally sinful so we need our anger to manifest as production. It is time to address global issues like genocide, oppression, unnecessary wars, pollution, racism, prejudice, cultural indifference concerning hunger and disease, and every other evil manifestation that harms God's children and/or His creation. It's time for these forces to see the children of God angry and with any luck....

"they won't like us when we are angry"! ;-)

-For The Kingdom

Where is God?

2012-05-02T19:03:00.001-04:00

Obviously the question , "where is God?" typically is not beckoning a location but rather substantial evidence of His existence. Usually this question can be found within the circles of those who are atheist/agnostic or in the midst of a tragedy, but how do we as Christians properly answer this question. How do we address the yearnings or inquiries of a world that is uncertain of God's presence, or worse... certain of his nonexistence? Successfully answering this question has been a passion of mine for many years and recently I have learned it to be the most difficult equation I have ever solved and instructed others in working out.

In the past I would have said that the answer to this question was simple. I would have swelled with pride as annoyed victims publicly gave answers to my questions that Kirk Cameron prepared for me. They would have given quick open ended responses which I would have exploited and countered with various scriptures; many of which would have been taken out of context, to prove my point. Circular reasoning would have been the source of my defense as I used The Bible to defend the existence of God. Truthfully this practice of unwanted public debating yielded little fruit and it took an incredible amount of effort and preparation. For every one person that was impressed with my "knowledge" of theology many would have been angered. I would have reasoned that this was a natural response from the "worldly" and that they have always despised the things of God... or at least thats what my Pastor said. However, upon examining the New Testament Jesus had a much more subtle and welcoming approach when building His Kingdom.

Many times in the New Testament Jesus often met the needs of people and asked them NOT tell others about what they had experienced with Him. Jesus did not want His name to be shared verbally and in some cases individuals who shared what Jesus had done despite being asked to do the contrary, actually hindered Christ's ability to minister effectively in those particular situations. I mean if anyone had a adequate reason to boast it was Christ and He wanted absolutely zero marketing. You see this theme through every one of the gospels in the early stages of Christ' ministry. Some pastors will argue that this is because humility is key to the character of Christ and it is meant to be evident in His Church. While I completely agree with the integral nature of meekness being evident in every follower of Christ I would disagree that this single observation was the apex of what Christ was communicating to His church in these passages.

I could go on forever concerning this subject, but in brief I believe that Christ showed us God with His life and wants us to do the same. Think of all the references in scripture that point to this truth. Christ said Himself "If you have seen me then you have seen the father". Meaning if you had observed or witnessed Him you would have seen God because He and the Father were one, Just we are now united with Christ through The Holy Spirit. Scripture also refers to The Church as the "hands and feet of Christ". In the original language this imagery is referring to action as these two portions of the body are typically the harbingers of movement. The biblical text also reveals that "the world will know us (Christians) by our love". Again in the original language this word implies more than feeling but an active expression of love. Christians in this country have somehow forgotten this principal and tend to focus on the academic or emotional responses concerning our faith, but that is not the formula we see in scripture.

In America I believe we need far less education concerning theology and far more application. I believe that the most effective way to grow the kingdom of Christ is to live as Jesus lived. To be selfless and love all no matter their appearance or social status. To give personal possessions away and make actual sacrifices for others is paramount to the calling of The Church, not polite suggestions. To die to ourselves and our sin so that Christ can be evident through our existence is our only true method of evangelism.

This is what it means to answer the question and that is why the question is so difficult to answer. Our lives are the cost and Jesus is the formula, an equation that is meant to be worked out in every decision we make until the solution of those we encounter daily is unquestionably... God.

( Interestingly enough, as I typed the last sentence of this post Michael Jackson's song "Man in the Mirror" began to play over the coffee shops radio..... coincidence?)

-For The Kingdom

Church in a Prius: Part III

2012-04-25T22:11:00.000-04:00

Until now the stories of conducting church from my 2007 Prius have been complete sugar and spice. I must admit it seemed so surreal to witness the sudden expansion of Commission. However this past Sunday was my wake up call and I have to say it left me shaken, even terrified. I may not have been as stunned with the events that occurred last Sunday if things had not been going so well at Commission. One should not misunderstand; our church is doing capitol all things considered, but I realize that this journey is no longer a fairy tale. Fairy tales practically always conclude with a happy ending. However this week I was reminded just how fragile our future really is, and how much faith it will require to see Commission through.

Easter week passed and we had 65 people in total attendance. It was such a refreshing time together. Everyone seemed to have truly enjoyed themselves from the worship to the egg hunt. As usual we did not advertise our Commission and we were still experiencing growth in attendance. 65 people may sound trivial to many pastors, but for a church that has a goal of planting many small congregations with each having a goal of a weekly attendance between 20-50 people (including children) we were thrilled. I was even beginning to get nervous about the potential need to multiply our community sooner than expected. Then something happened that brought my thoughts crashing back to earth.

Things moved along as usual and this past weeks attendance was low due to the poor weather. As my leaders will happily tell you "people are still hungry when it rains" so thanks to my wonderful team we have a concrete rain or shine policy at Commission. Things were going as well as they could in undesirable conditions and then something caught us off guard.

What started as a friendly gesture between two homeless people somehow evolved into a potential brawl between them. To be honest I still do not understand what caused these two to almost harm one another. Death threats and excessive profanity filled the park. I noticed that one of the aggressors had his hands in his pockets while making promises to "bleed" the other. This made the situation even more frightening especially with small children present. I handled the situation as calmly as I could and luckily one of the perpetrators left the premises before the situation exploded. I was disturbed to say the least.

"What do I do now?" I thought to myself. "What happens when things get out of hand?" I asked myself.

I do not remember a time in my life were I felt so unqualified. I mean I have played guitar and sang for the past ten years of my career. Music was the extent of my "ministry". "Why would God call me to do this?" I questioned. I mean I was happy just being the music guy where my life was secure and my music was adored. In "church" things are so ... safe, and shelter was honestly sounding attractive. I truly missed the traditional church model and being in the spot light for a brief moment. After all sitting for an hour listening occasionally to some middle aged socially inept pastor desperately trying to be hip in order to connect with the twenty somethings is much safer than my idea, and it pays! Then I remembered something I read a long time ago. "What kind of faith does one actually possess without risk of personal detriment, or failure"? I understood at once that if I am not going to bleed for a cause than it is not a cause worth standing for. So I await the pain, I welcome the falls, and I accept the failures. I will take the mockery, accept the danger, and embrace the criticism. I lay it all down; my ambitions, my comforts, my preferences, my pride, my legacy, and even my life. It is a gift to the one who gave the same for me. I do not care if anyone supports me in this endeavor or if they think me less of a "christian" or even a fool. I don't care if I die in the process because I am finding life in risking it. I know that I have a mission and I do not have time for fear and doubt!

-For The Kingdom

Church in a Prius: Part II

2012-04-18T15:06:00.001-04:00

I left off our story last week by explaining that our Co-mission had located a public park to utilize for our outreach. Washington Park is located in one of Beaufort's poorest quadrants. Houses are literally falling apart and the crime rate in the area is substantially higher than the rest of the county. To find someone in need you can simply begin a conversation with any one of the residences surrounding Washington Park. Our team chose this space because we were aware that Beaufort county currently has almost 600 homeless people living within its jurisdiction and that deeply moved us to action. This is because we feel strongly that the church described in Acts was centered around those who are poor, broken, and oppressed and we believed that these people are meant to be the heartbeat of ALL Christ's followers. Using this knowledge we structured an event for the broken in this area. We remembered that there is no soup kitchen in our city so we decided to prepare and serve a free hot meal weekly on Sunday afternoons at 1:00PM for anyone who needs it. We also decided to integrate our feeding event with a public worship service. Anyone was free to attend worship with us or only partake in the free meal, meaning our worship was not mandatory to receive assistance. (on a side note: required attendance for aid from "Christian" organizations REALLY PISSES ME OFF, but I digress)

The following week I purchased a portable sound system to use for our liturgy that we would conduct before the free lunch. I was so excited to begin our feeding. I had always wanted to worship God in a weekly service with music, communion, teaching, and fellowship while serving the community simultaneously. For me this approach aligns with the greatest commandment "love God with all of your mind, body, and soul and love your neighbor as yourself". This concept was so appealing but until this moment I had never considered it's implementation.

The first week we expected a maximum of 15 people to attend, including ourselves. We were excited to proceed but we wanted to take things slowly in order to get a process established, so we thought it best not to advertise for our feeding event at this time. Instead we personally communicated the time and location of the feeding to a few needy individuals in the surrounding area and hoped 1/4 would show up. God, it would seem had a different plan. What happened that day surprised my entire team and gave us tremendous hope for Commission's future.

Our first Sunday to our amazement 45 people attended the event and most of them were not the people we had personally invited. I was utterly shocked by this occurrence. These people (most of whom I had never met) began flocking to our location. What was more encouraging was that most were not just there for a free meal. They worshipped with us and gladly participated in the study of scripture and communion. It appeared as though they were more excited than we were about the service. I remember looking around at my core group as this amazing spectacle began to occur and the apparent look of astonishment was obviously displayed on every one of our faces.

We concluded the worship service and were satisfied that everything had gone extremely well. As our new friends were departing we questioned them as to how how they were informed of our service event. The only certain thing that we were able to conclude was that "someone" informed them of our service, but no one knew specifically who this person was. To this day I still have no idea who marketed Co-mission, but one thing was certain... God was moving! Our journey did not end there, but that is another story.

To be continued...

Church in a Prius: Part I

2012-04-12T14:43:00.000-04:00

I know I have been out of the blogging world for far too long and I apologize for my absence . I am pleased to report that I am back in the writing saddle again. My absence was caused by repeated conflicts with my schedule. Unfortunately my hours had gotten quite out of hand and for the past six months I had not been able to focus on my truly important purpose in the world of discipleship and writing (well it is important to me anyway).

Since October of 2011 I actually attempted to be a Honda car salesman to support my family while planting Co-missions and in so doing I found the line between business and being a follower of Christ too difficult to morally navigate. Supposedly some people can accomplish this with ease and if so I respect those individuals, but I am not capable of such a task. In the past six months I witnessed God moving in our Co-mission and I knew when I saw His presence in our midst that what He was doing in our community would require much more attention.

This story would be much more meaningful if you understood the context . For five years I have had this burning desire to see the church found in Acts to be recreated in our culture. I tried desperately to fight this battle from within the confines of the American Church infrastructure but sadly this was a complete failure. It was far too frustrating to nurture a model that seemed so out of touch with the original construct found in the scriptures. My frustrations turned into questions which lead to research, which then lead to theories, which spilled into every crevice of my reality. The concept of redesigning the American church entirely consumed my thoughts but I was still hesitant to make the first move in implementing this model. Two years ago I started loosely designing what I believed to be Gods orchestrated steps in this recreation. Last year due to an inciting incident I was forced to plant this model. It was much sooner than I would have liked to have launched and not in the location I wanted, but my desires are obviously secondary to God's will. For 10 months our core group began to meet in homes. Their focus was studying scripture chapter by chapter and growing closer together as a unit. The embryonic stage was full of trial and error and I would be lying if I told you that I did not want to give up. In the midst of our journey something unexpected occurred that has given us all hope.

My elders and I were sitting around enjoying an import beer (yes, we are those pesky transparent Christians) when something amazing happened. My leaders informed me that they were frustrated with our church... and with me. This may sound peculiar, but I am quite fond of constructive criticism because it is a sign of trust and an opportunity for growth. They told me that "this idea you have for church is great and it is really compelling, but we are not actually doing it...or anything for that matter and we want MORE than this." I knew the instant that this desire was uttered that my leaders were right on target. I had been foolishly hesitant to fully launch our efforts because of other factors that were occurring but I knew I had to immediately confront my fearful tendencies and take this conversation seriously. It was just, one of those moments when you are convinced God was speaking to you through His followers.

We discussed ideas for a few hours and made plans to adjust our course in ministry. The next week we began making and delivering bagged meals in my Toyota Prius and my friends Ford Escape to people who were in need. We had no idea where to start or even where to search. We found 5 needy citizens the first week. Our group was so excited. In the grand scheme of things we had not done much, but at least we had done something. This was the first time since we launched our church that we began to see God using our community in an amazing way. The next week we found and fed six people, then 12, then 15, then 20, and eventually 40. Then one Sunday we decided to try something different. We located a park in one of the poorest areas of my city, and the vision that God gave us caused our life stories to blossom into something beautiful... something with meaning.

TO BE CONTINUED

Audio Taster

2012-04-11T13:29:00.003-04:00

So it is official, I am a part time entertainer/worship leader, part time student, and a full time activist. This is a leap of faith and if you are interested in using me as a musician and/ or worship leader please contact me at (843) 478-0209 to discuss the possibility of our collaboration. I hope that we can work together very soon.

Christopher Drury 21st time

2012-02-28T00:37:00.000-05:00

Part V: Obama 2012?

2012-02-09T23:15:00.002-05:00

PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE POST BEFORE RESPONDING AND IN SO DOING PLEASE USE SCRIPTURE IN CONTEXT (pet peeve)

Yes I am a Pastor, and yes I am voting for Obama again. I know that publicly announcing my presidential choice for 2012 is just one more step taken toward career suicide. However, in my ventures (which inevitably seem to piss off the entire conservative Christian world) I have made some very difficult decisions regarding my political party preference and my faith. I invite those reading this to finish the article before jumping to any conclusions or posting any hurtful comments.

There is a common misconception in this nation that states to be a Christian means to be politically conservative by default. I am in no way saying that there are not Republicans who are in deed Christian, I am simply saying that these conservatives are not the ONLY Christians in America. Regrettably there is a plethora of believers who preach that as Christians we should only vote concerning four topics and those topics are abortion, gay marriage, the war on terror, and taxes. Before I continue I should probably elaborate on my own stance for these four issues

In regards to abortion I am pro-life, however I am also anti-war because I believe all life is sacred regardless of age. Think about it. You cannot be pro-life and pro-war... it is an oxymoron. In short I believe war is a tool that is often used to generate profits and/or secure resources.

In regards to gay marriage I could care less if it is legalized. Whether you agree with homosexuality or not is irrelevant because homosexuals are not hurting anyone. If one is an advocate of traditional marriage than legalization does nothing to tarnish that interpretation. Meaning if ones interpretation of biblical marriage is between man, woman, and God how would a notarized piece of paper and a tax break change the conservative message of marriage? Does the government bind souls together or does God?

In regards to war there is nothing on earth that I detest more! I honor and appreciate all who serve/served in our military. In fact some of my closest friends are currently in service, but I am disgusted with this country's lust for blood and power. We say we want to end terror but realistically our desire does not hold water and the world sees right through our government. The war on terror extends far beyond the boundaries of the Middle East. There is genocide occurring at this very moment in country's that do not receive American assistance. As I am writing this article injustice is sweeping through Africa, Eastern Asia, and Central America and we will do nothing to stop it because these country's do not possess the wealth or resources to gain our attention or aid. I believe that as a Christian nation we should strive for peace, which means loving our enemies no matter the circumstance or how difficult the task.

Paying taxes is biblical and The Bible tells us that Jesus asks for those who have more money to give to those who do not. Democrats are in favor of raising taxes for those who make more than $250,000 annually while decreasing taxes for those who are lower to middle class. This is an approach that I believe Jesus would advocate. In brief my response to people who are angered with the idea of higher tax rates sounds something like this...

"Be glad Jesus is not president, because he would ask for everything you have!"

When I communicate that I am a democrat Christians always bring the above points to the table to prove my alleged heresy. My question is always the same to my accusers. What about the other issues?

What about the rich giving graciously to the poor, welfare and health care for the needy, fair wages for workers, clean energy, environmental protection, foreign tolerance, peaceful foreign relations, better education, equal opportunity, anti racism campaigns, regulations on corporate policies to prevent greed, battling indifference etc? The list goes on and on and they are all obviously biblical in my opinion. Jesus' heart breaks for the poor and I will vote for the party that extends grace to the suffering citizens of America because I believe Jesus wants me to give them more because He gave me ALL.

All too often I see people who vote on moral issues alone. In my opinion this is a selfish mistake. Simply put we love to cast blame or responsibility on someone else. We think that by voting on moral values that we hold dear that those same values will somehow trickle down from a handful of leaders to the majority of our country's population. The reality is that if we are not satisfied with the moral state of this country than we have only "The American Church" to blame. It is the Church's responsibility to disciple our nation in Godly values...not the governments. So if moral integrity is declining than it is because discipleship is failing, not because Obama is President. (P.S. If the American Church was doing it's job we would not need higher tax rates to meet societal needs)

The point of this post is not to sway any ones decision for voting this year. I do however want people to comprehend that you can be a Democrat and a true Christian. I know because I am one of them. The point of this post is to get you to think about politics outside what a denomination or Pastor has instructed. The question we have to ask ourselves is; who would God want me to vote for? Finding the answer is simple, what is difficult is loving our neighbors who may have been given a different instruction and then agreeing to disagree.

For the Kingdom

Part IV: Indifference

2012-01-26T02:42:00.001-05:00

There is nothing more natural than for me to be consumed with myself. I mean it is an easy trap to befall since I cannot recollect any time in my life when I was not with me. So I guess I can comprehend why I am my first priority because since the beginning I have always been there for myself. It doesn't take a degree to realize that the American culture does not aid in curing our nation's infection of indifference. We currently rely on corporations rather than community to help supply our needs. We have little too no reason at all to interact on any level socially. Our country's current definition of "friends" is a three to four digit number that is located on the sidebar of our facebook page. Our idea of contributing to the greater good of all mankind is liking a status update or reposting a tweet.

My wife and I recently watched the movie "Kickass" (dude's chill it's the title). The movie; although crude had several powerful points that made a lasting impression on me. One point in particular stood out while watching the film. There is a scene in the film when a man is getting brutally beaten by three gang members; all the while dozens of witnesses do absolutely nothing to intervene. The movie's hero (Kickass) bravely springs into action to aid the fallen citizen. He is not much help to anyone and in truth the movies title is extremely misleading because he totally gets his ass kicked. The gang's leader pulls out a knife and before he stabs Kickass he asks him; "What's wrong with you kid? Do you want to die for some guy you don't even know". Kickass responds with a very powerful statement "Three @#$% holes beating down one guy while everyone else stands around and watches and you want to know what's wrong with me? Go ahead, I'd rather die!" This amazing scene reminded me of a parable in The Gospels.

In the book of Matthew there is a parable which discusses the ulcer of indifference that lies within the heart of all humanity. Jesus is describing two types of people awaiting judgement. The parable begins with the imagery of those going to heaven as sheep. The sheep are the followers of Christ who fed the hungry, clothed the naked, gave water to the thirsty, and affection to the broken. The parable continues with comparing those who were indifferent and selfish too goats and they were to be destroyed.

Two things stand out to me in this passage. The first being that the goats knew Jesus as Lord. The second is that in this story the people were not being judged for what they did in life but rather what they did NOT do. Meaning, Jesus did not have an archive of sin that was sending the goats to oblivion. However it seems that Jesus remembered every instance in which these "goats" turned a blind eye to those who were less fortunate. So remember my friends loving God and loving others in action... are one in the same command.

Part III: Beyond the Scorecard Continued...

2012-01-18T11:14:00.000-05:00

So I have three more things that we can do to change the playbook for the American church. I do not want to spend a lot of time writing preemptive ramblings so I will cut to the chase.

1. Monthly celebration services.: I know it is hard to believe but ministry is truly a heavy burden to bare...well at least how Americans do ministry. Under the ordinance of our current model it is nearly impossible to devote our entire attention to discipleship and service. For example I was once a music director in a church that required three music rehearsals every week for our Sunday service (who's skill, I might add required little to no practice at all). If I was unfortunate enough to be participating in a skit that week...well lets just say I quickly burnt out. I agree that we should pour all of our efforts into our ministries, but how are our efforts being utilized? During my career as a worship director I dedicated 70-90 hours every weekly to a two hour block of time on Sunday's . This was frustrating because that church never showed true progress in discipleship. Not to mention that we were virtually non existent to the broken in our community. This is a common dilemma in churches and I believe I have a simple solution...bury it. I believe the church has to construct a model that is small and focused on serving their community and one another as a tool for teaching the way of Jesus. This concept of missional communities is not new, but there are leaders who are spearheading this movement in the U..S. Missional communities are a refreshing movement and I believe they are the wave of the future.

2. Remove the Mask!: I may be totally alone in this but I am exhausted with pretending to be a certain type of Christian. One would think that church would give liberty on non essentials of our faith but It never fails that Pastors pressure their followers to cater to the beliefs of a denomination or their own personal interpretations of scripture. So my career was filled with lies and omissions regarding my personality in order to play politics with a congregation and maintain my position as a worship leader. This series of false pretenses lead me to start missional communities, and in our community we have decided to be totally transparent within our gatherings. I use every opportunity to inform people that I am a democratic, social drinking, family guy watching, mild profanity using, anti-American church, follower of Christ. Some people would argue that I have fallen spiritually but that's because what they knew of me was a facade. They knew "church" Christopher which had to exist in order to keep my job. I have always been the things that I now openly express, but now I have the pleasure of revealing them. WHAT A FEELING!

3. Where is the Danger?: American Christians love to play it safe. We have absolutely no idea what it is like to make a decision for Christ that effects our way of life, or even greater... our very existence. We are only conscious of a Christianity that is a portion of our weekly routine, and in America we will likely never encounter a situation in which our faith could mean our demise, but that is not the only danger that I am making reference too. I would like to put this more delicately but I cannot.....we're boring. The cultures view of Christianity is that we are dull and uninteresting. Our missional community decided to confront this epidemic of nationwide "lame sauce" by living our lives a little more dangerously. We decided to start a beer sampling/bible study. We gather every Wednesday night and sample one glass of import beer. There is a limit of one beer per visitor and we enjoy our ale while we interact with bible study and communion. It is a controlled environment in which we can discuss our week and plan our application of scripture that is attractive to our culture. It was no surprise that pastors were slandering our ministry and conservative Christians were absolutely disgusted with us; even if they themselves drink socially. I do not believe that a beer bible study will dissolve the cultures perception of Christians being "square". Greater danger and sacrifice will be required in God's mission of redemption. However, I do believe the necessary remedy for our nations misconception of church will need to be biblically grounded and traditionally controversial.

Part II: Beyond the Scorecard

2012-01-12T23:18:00.000-05:00

Changing the scorecard has been a conversation which has been much needed encouragement in my field of expertise. This phrase basically defines our need to alter our focus from growing Sunday attendance and finances in "a" church to generating disciples for "the" church . I do not believe there is a conversation that has been more biblical in the last decade than changing our scorecard. In fact one of my favorite authors coined this phrase and it has been a tool that I use frequently when developing a biblical approach to worship. Although lately I am wondering if we need more than units of measure to weigh our success. Maybe it is now time to "rewrite the playbook" for the American church.

Changing the scorecard is an amazing concept which I support entirely and I adore the author who created it. However, most pastors who have heard of the scorecard evolution only change their ministry's scale and not the process in which their system operates. This is discouraging because I believe the term "changing the scorecard" was partially designed as a gateway for a new reformation in the American church. Oddly enough a majority of today's pastors are still in love with a broken system and are now simply measuring their current failure with a biblical formula. In truth most Christians want to change the scorecard, but refuse to change the structure of American church.

Even when money is being dumped by the millions into a dying system; church leaders are to fond of worship services to adjust their course in ministry. These leaders fail to comprehend that as the church we have to have initiative to both construct the church described in the scriptures and maintain a modern approach to ancient practices in order to reach our community. So I propose a simple plan of action. If the system is to blame, than it is time for a church-wide overhaul.

Below is what I believe to be three fundamental shifts for the survival of the American church.

1. It is not a concert: When you read the scriptures in their original context you realize that most of the words used to describe worship are not referring to music or sermons, but are defining worship as love through service. We can still have quality music without the complexity of having a professional grade band or choir that distracts from true worship. Simply use a few talented musicians and a basic high quality sound system, (Like a L1 tower) in order to keep the focus on worship and not creating a concert.

2. Join the Conversation: I believe there is more power in communal discussion then there ever will be in a sermon. Occupy is a perfect example of my theory. The Occupy movement grew dangerously fast out of conversations not presentations....and historically so did the Church of Acts. Personally I have heard amazing sermons in the past, but for the life of me I cannot recollect what information was shared that made these particular lectures so memorable. For me the most powerful application of scripture originate in guided discussions in which all who attend can participate. Bottom line....sermons only work occassionally and have inadequate results.

3. Loose your building: Why do we need buildings that are only used three hours a week? The county I live in has hundreds of sanctuary's and over six hundred homeless people. Instead of constructing a space for worship services create or alter your building for worship through community service (Example: homeless shelters, free daycare, recovery centers, orphanages, soup kitchens etc.). If a worship area is still desired than it is easy to set up chairs in a building once a week or to meet at a free public space. In short use your funds to aid the broken in your city without catering to the fancies of a congregation who desires weekly emotional stimulation.

To be Continued...

Part I: Ending the World as We Know it

2012-01-06T00:39:00.001-05:00

WARNING!!! This series of articles will not be "spiritual enough" for some readers. These articles will not contain any quotes that are deep enough to share in a bible study or small group. However, the problems listed in each article are real and virtually ignored. This series plans to address societal ulcers that are robbing the world from an abundance of life and if that is not spiritual enough for some readers then they should come back in two weeks so we can "talk" about church again.

Part I: Feed the Need

One of the most important actions according to Jesus was being an answer to hunger. So much so that scripture tells us that Jesus actually sees feeding the hungry as evidence of being a true follower of "His Way". Unfortunately hunger has reached catastrophic levels world wide and the church is taking historically low measures to solve it. To me this is a spiritual issue because indifference is not a byproduct of following Jesus. Knowing that this is precedent for followers of "The Way" how can we battle our inertia and address the global hunger epidemic?

I am typically given a simple response to the previous question. The assumed remedy for hunger would be to donate canned goods and buy a meal for a homeless citizen. Albeit noble this solution alone is terribly shortsighted because there is approximately 900,000,000 people around the globe suffering from starvation every day....and this number is growing.

The problem is that it is becoming nearly impossible to cultivate the produce needed to sustain our rapidly growing population. Studies are showing that in the next 50 years the world will have to produce more food than the previous 10,000 years combined. This is quite the dilemma, but Roger Doiron with Kitchen Gardeners International has marketed a simple solution....private gardening.

In Roger Doirons lecture he shows how anyone can transform a tiny plot of grass into a food making, health changing, money saving machine. The resurgence of private gardening holds a number of implications for our community as well. Not only would we offer healthier options for our family and charities but we would also

Become less dependent upon corporations and other entities to provide food for ourselves.
Reignite a lost sense of community as we could grow and share our produce with our neighbors
Save an average of $1,100-$4200 on food per year.
Help solve the future global food shortage by taking the power to grow food back into our hands and allowing current mass produced raw foods to be distributed elsewhere to more impoverished areas.
Gives people who have limited or insufficient funds the ability to give back to their community.

There is some initial expense to gardening but growing your own food has very little overhead and a small backyard would be an adequate size if the crops were carefully planned and maintained.

For these reasons, this year my wife and I will be growing our own produce and donating a percentage of the crops to local pantries and families in need. We want to be seen as the hands and feet of Christ a.k.a. the movers and doers of The Kingdom of God repairing this broken realm. I wrote this article in hopes that other activist would join this initiative.

P.S. shout out too our First Lady for spearheading a gardening initiative!

Is This the End of the World?

2012-01-03T00:32:00.000-05:00

I for one certainly hope that the end of the world is near, but before I continue I should elaborate. I do not believe nor promote the once popular Mayan calendar theory and I am definitely not making reference to an apocalypse, but I do long for this world as we know it to end. This statement is constructed from my own definition of the word "world". I believe the human race is ultimately a product of individual and communal experiences. This is of course the world that we are all subject too both personally and socially. This broad collection of observations gives us our lens in which we will observe and cultivate the world as we know it. So in short my definition for a world would be the human experience. My observations of this world has fingerprints of hope and beauty but the macro view is far from pleasant. My own examinations of our "world has lead me to believe that it should end... and soon.

Three nights ago I was driving home from work. As I was in route I was considering the resolutions that I would make this year and once again I was confronted with the same promise that I have avoided completing for six years. It is a little known fact to anyone who has met me but I ........... am overweight (gasp). I wish to tell my friends that I suffer from obesity, but I hide it so well my friends would assume that I was lying or joking. It only takes one glance at my profile to know that I am kidding. Truthfully I'm fluffy and they all know it; but I digress.

As I continued to ponder and plan my diet and other potential commitments I realized something about myself... I discovered yet again that at the center of my being I am a selfish monster. I suddenly remembered that we live in a world that is corroded with corruption, greed, evil, injustice, deception, social wounds, cultural cancers; and as I recalled this truth I asked myself; where was Christopher Drury? Driving his Prius mentally planning his weight loss goals and leisure reading for 2012.

I knew instantly that I had to blog about this epiphany because I believed it would be relevant to most of the American culture. I elected to call one of my best friends (Sean) and get his opinion about my idea for a motivational New Years post. He listened intently and answered honestly. So after I had summarized my article for this week the conversation went something like this.

Me: What do you think?
Sean: It sucks.
Me: ........?

The wonderful truth about my relationship with Sean is that he always has my best interest in mind. He will tell me what I need to hear even when it is painful. Sean is a genuine friend that would not allow me to create something cliche or ordinary. He knows that I have very specific ideas about how we can change our world and will push me to publish them even if some readers (including himself) would disagree. Meaning he would not let me get away with writing a vague motivational piece that would offer nothing more than warm fuzzies to an audience who desperately wants to see this world rebuilt as badly as I do. Sean asked me to write my ideas boldly whether those ideas are spiritual or political. He said to me "just avoid being political while being spiritual". I knew instantly that Sean was right so I decided to alter the intended course for this post.

This post will actually be a series of articles. Over the next three weeks I will post 6 articles that will make specific suggestions as to how each of us can chip away the world that we had a hand in creating. It is time for all of us to move beyond conversation to creation. Together we could make sure that 2012 is "The End of This World".

Look for my next post and buckle up!

P.S. bring your ideas too the table :-)

Changing the World With Your Backyard

2011-12-31T01:07:00.007-05:00

I thought this video was incredibly motivating. I personally think it is high time we take the control we have given back from monstrous corporations who obviously have no concern for our health or our lives! What do you think? What do you think God would want us to do? How could this movement relate to the missional movement in the American church? Post up my friends!!

Finding God in Skyrim

2011-12-28T03:23:00.011-05:00

  I hope those who are reading this article had a wonderful Christmas with their family and loved ones. I had an extraordinary holiday with my family this year and to my surprise I received an undeserved but extremely entertaining gift this Christmas ...Skyrim for the PS3

Yes, I know I am a dork but please don't hate...appreciate!!!

The reader who does not know what Skyrim is should be grateful that they still maintain some hope for a social life. However, readers who are a fan of Skyrim should know that it is probably too late for them to be rescued. However these readers should be comforted in knowing that I am with them in being a proud and noble member of the Order of Nerds.

Before playing Skyrim I too was utterly perplexed as to how a video game could attract so many people to spend countless hours motionless and hypnotized on a couch. I continued to be baffled until I played Skyrim for the first time four weeks ago. Since then I can clearly grasp why this game has created such a gigantic following.

The world of Skyrim is massive and your options are virtually limitless. This game is formatted to give the player absolute independence as he/she forges their destiny as the "dragonborn"(a predestined dragon slayer who protects the citizens of Skyrim). Although this game possesses many attractive features, I believe the gift of total freedom is what's causing such an explosive following for this video game.

The player can choose to be a savior or a villain at any point in the storyline. The choice to steal or to unjustly slaughter an entire village is only a button away, but how is my experience with Skyrim spiritually significant for myself or my readers?

The spiritual significance of Skyrim came when I reflected upon the choices I made once I reached a certain point in the game's story. The dragonborn (your players character) slays a dragon and is rewarded diplomatic immunity by a king. I being the enlightened peacemaker I am, decided to take this honored position seriously and proceeded to lay waste to the city. This act of destruction involved the onslaught of annoying citizens as well as committing multiple accounts of theft that would typically manifest a hefty sentence or bounty. However, since my character was immunized to such punishments I avoided imprisonment by simply mentioning my political status in the city.

My decisions although humorous, reflected something dark buried within my soul. I know that my choices while playing Skyrim were merely for personal amusement, but I have to ask myself what part of my personality was amused?

     I took this question deeper by subjecting it to my own reality. I began to wonder how my past might have been different If my actions had no consequence? The state of my depravity was evident as I realized that the hypothetical scenarios that emerged in my mind were quite disturbing. I then began to question why I constantly use my liberation from sins power as an excuse to act on my sinful nature.  Was Jesus trying to give instruction about this dilemma in the book of Matthew?

In Matthew Jesus clearly teaches that anger is the equivalent to murder and lust is parallel to adultery. At first this seems like a major leap in logic, but in the context of our decision making process this philosophy is perfectly sensible. Every offense we conjure was initially conceived as a thought or desire. I personally have never heard of an affair that didn't begin in someones mind or progress from an emotional state. Also I have never witnessed an act of violence that was not fueled by some sort of trauma or frustration.

In Matthew 23 Jesus addresses our lack of internal focus again by telling the pharisees that if they would clean the inside of their cup then the outside of the cup would be clean also.

This scripture speaks to me on multiple levels. In truth I have done things as a Christian that I had previously thought impossible or beneath my level of "spiritual maturity". Was it because I was not a true believer? On the contrary, I was absolutely a believer, but I did not guard my heart, thoughts, desires, and emotions as scripture instructs me too daily? Meaning, I didn't wake up one morning and decide to offend anyone but over a period of time I had allowed my thoughts and ambitions to go unchecked and considered them harmless as long as they remained internal. In other words the contents of my cup were disgusting, but I considered them acceptable since no other person could observe my thoughts or my heart.

I believe this is a reason why our community sees little difference in the behavior of "Christians" in comparison to the rest of society. We ignore and eventually act upon our desires/emotions as easily as the rest of our culture. Sure we might use more acceptable language during our conversations or practice a more subtle approach to our actions, but at our core we are just as selfish, corrupt, and cruel as any criminal or offender.

Transforming this disturbing reality in The Church will take more than putting more butts in chairs on Sunday mornings (which seems to be our typical answer). It will take God's love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, long suffering, faith and self control deepening its root in our minds and passions. This is the only solution that will ultimately bare fruit in our decisions that we make every day.

     This evolution has to begin in the heart of every believer. What inevitably flows from our personal spiritual development will assist in conquering our sin and act as a beacon of hope to those we encounter in our day to day routine.

P.S. Skyrim is AWESOME!!!

Would Jesus Occupy? My Thoughts This Season.

2011-12-24T10:56:00.001-05:00

The Colbert Report
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Stephen Colbert captures my thoughts entirely. This video is from 2010 but it is still powerful. What are your thoughts?

Did the Broncos Get Tebowed by the Patriots? Does God Care?

2011-12-22T11:36:00.000-05:00

It is no debate that God loves the Broncos, because God loves everyone who plays in the NFL (even when they lose to the Patriots and the Bills). There is no question that God loves Tim Tebow, because God loves the world. However, in recent conversation concerning Tim Tebow the realm between frustration and education is becoming incredibly difficult for me to seperate. This is not a personal vendetta against Tim Tebow. Truthfully I respect Tim Tebow's character especially when his values are maintained in a career that is virtually devoid of moral integrity. So you should know this post has absolutely nothing to do with Tim personally but rather what some of his fans and many pastors are forging by Tebow's legacy and integrating into God's story.

I for one have a serious problem when a Pastor teaches that God is blessing The Broncos because Tim Tebow practices the formula (A+B= God annointing your career and/or bank account). This understanding of scripture concerns me because there is a gigantic flaw in this equation. This theological error has always lead me to the following question. What about the followers of Christ who include this exact theorem daily and have a negative outcome? These disciples of Jesus may be in poverty, ridicule, or even imminent danger. I mean does God really care more about the NFL than genocide?

It is a sign of our country's spiritual depravity when God's divine will is subject to the confines of success. God cares about professional athletes and their fans but his heart beats for the outcast and the poor in our community. God is comforting those who are suffering persecution in the middle east, and God cares about the starving children in South America. He longs for justice and mercy around the globe and He weeps with the broken and diseased in our society. This post was simply intended to communicate one point in our understanding of God's will. I believe God is angered that we are more concerned with professional football than being an answer to a fallen world and He is devastated that we falsely assimilate His desire and presence into our indifference.

Methodology

2011-12-15T16:28:00.000-05:00

I believe methodology is something The Church is struggling with. We are afraid to do anything unique, even when originality is urgently needed. Now I am not stating the misconception of being“relevant with culture”. American Culture has a sickness that can only be fixed by instilling a new belief system into communities that transcends our current population’s lifestyles. What I am saying is that we should be relevant to our communities needs.

Methods (style of music, dress code, age demographic, meeting times, small group curriculum, and community services) can and should adapt differently. Unfortunately these methods differ for every city. So we have to stop depending on books, conferences, and larger churches to create our techniques for us. We have to find God’s systems for our church individually. God cultivates as an artist not as mass replicator. So in other words God has a unique God sized purpose for your ministry and it simply has to be discovered.

As your reading this you are probably waiting for a solution. The fact is I do not possess a blueprint for success... God does. Finding your answers is found in prayer and intentional observations. For example there is a GREAT ministry for single moms in my city. You see, there is a high percentage of single moms in my county, and in order to minister to them a local church designed a free oil change program every 4 months. At this event there is free food, games, and an onsite mechanic that inspects every vehicle for potential mechanical problems. It is a legitimate need, it is simple, it’s effective and this service day is making a lasting impact on my city. This concept of being organic and missional is emerging within cities across America (Bar ministries, homeless ministries, and motorcycle clubs) with unprecidented success. The key is not copying but rather cultivating. The methods are only the means and like my friend Steve said to me once "It's about The Master...not the method."

Now it’s your turn. There is already an answer… knock…seek…ask.

Relevance???

2011-08-24T13:03:00.000-04:00

     In the past I have not been a fan of Chick-fil-a. Not because of anything personal that I have against the company or their food. It is simply because the Chick-fil-a located in my home town does not sell fresh food and the restaurant is usually unclean. In my travels it seems that I inevitably experience these circumstances. This is considerably frustrating because I have always heard such good things about their quality of food and until recently have not  had the privilege in partaking its fried poultry goodness. However, all of this changed once I moved to South Carolina three years ago.

   One day my family was running errands and we were all starving (not literally look at my pic). While debating where to eat lunch my oldest son noticed that there was a inflatable shark bounce house/giant slide hybrid in the parking lot of my city's only Chick-fil-a. We reluctantly agreed to yield to his request for lunch. We strolled in the restaurant and to our surprise this franchise was well kept and the service was outstanding. I being the optimist and spiritual leader that I am... leaned over to my wife and said "too bad the food is going to suck!"

   We found a table opened our mouths and with an astounding glance at my wife's look of bliss I discovered the claims of Chick-fil-a's glory were far from mythical and were now within my grasp. We absolutely love this restaurant and I would dare say my family is now their #1 consumer. I chose to convey my history with this business so you can understand just how special it is for us (after all they introduced us to the cookies and cream milkshake...............................be right back).

   (mouthful of milkshake)

          A while back I was pulling up to Chic-fil-a's drive-through window and I noticed a sign on the menu that read Pirate Day. The employees all had patches, toy hooks, and the gentlemen working the window even had a bandanna and a toy parrot. I, believing myself to be the most creative citizen in my county wished to share my comedic magnitude with employee in a fun and obviously relevant way. So I rolled down my automatic Prius window and said in a cliche Blackbeard voice "arrrggghhh matey what be the chaaarrrrrrrgggggeeeeee?" I thought myself to be quite the amusing customer...but to my amazement the employee just looked annoyed. He didn't even giggle!!!

"But how could this be?" I thought "Jack Sparrow himself would have soiled his panties all over the poop deck from laughter ." I reasoned.

   Embarrassed and confused I pulled up 15 feet to check my order. As I was inspecting the food I was unaware that my window was still slightly cracked and emanating from the gunmetal Suburban behind me I heard the words "Arrrrrgggghhhhh matey give me a waffle fry or walk da plank arrrrrrggggghhhhh." I suddenly realized that I was not the comic genius I had previously thought. Not only was I unoriginal I had actually irritated the person I was trying to connect with.

   Is it like this with church? Do we make claims that our church is unique because of our style but once examined it is almost identical to the church downtown and still operates like the traditional church across the street? Is being "relevant" with a culture that is sick and despises Christianity showing any promising results?

   I meet with many ministers during the week and do you know how often a pastor claims to practice a unique approach to ministry. I then wonder at the end of the day if my community hears the same cliche' pirate voice?

For The Kingdom