ramblings

The End

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 19:15:00 +0000

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot." Ecc 3:1-2

After four years and 303 posts it's time to say goodbye to the blog. It started as one of my New Year' Resolutions for 2007 and its ending as one of my New Year's Resolutions for 2011. The first was about forcing myself to do more writing and having a way to share ideas that didn't fit neatly into other forums. The latter is about simplifying.

It's been fun, burdensome, enjoyable, controversial, interesting and quiet. I'll keep the old posts up for a while but won't be adding anything new. Thanks for reading.

A Crazy Idea

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 16:22:00 +0000

A couple of months ago I added an item to the agenda of our shepherd's meeting titled "crazy idea." As usual, I emailed the agenda to everyone ahead of time and I have to give credit to our shepherds. Not a one of them called for an explanation in advance! I love a church that welcomes "crazy ideas."

At the meeting I laid out the specifics of the idea and sought approval. I wanted to close out the Holy Spirit series with a rather unique message. Instead of asking people to listen to another sermon I wanted to challenge them to be the sermon. The idea was to contact the Family Center (a local non-profit that serves needy families) and ask them for a list of items they needed. Then we'd organize the lists and have them ready for Sunday. I would stand up at the normal time of the sermon, give a few instructions, pass out the lists and then we'd dismiss church. The challenge to our families was to take the lists and go shopping right then! Don't eat lunch. Don't fellowship in the hallways. Go be the sermon! We would then arrange three drop-off locations around Columbia, take collections until 12:30 pm and take everything over to the Family Center. So far, so good. I love a church that gives "crazy ideas" a fair hearing.

Of course, all that sounded cool but it wasn't crazy. Here's the crazy part. I proposed that we forgo the contribution on Sunday and explain that whatever they planned to give to church that morning was to be their "budget" for the shopping trip. Have you ever been to a church where the preacher said, "We're not taking up a collection today?"Our giving had exceeded budget in 2010 so this was good way to share the blessing with our community. Plus, it would really raise the stakes in terms of our purchasing power. Our average contribution is around $12,000 a week so ideally we'd be able to unleash a major blessing on the Family Center. The shepherd's unanimously approved the idea. I love a church that approves "crazy ideas."

So we arranged all the details with the Family Center and set a date. We kept it all a big secret outside of notifying a few volunteers to man the trucks. Everyone else showed up expecting a normal Sunday. As the message got closer, I started to get nervous. How would they respond? Would they like this idea? Would they participate? The answer was a resounding "Yes!" From the moment I started explaining the idea there was an immediate spark in the room. I could sense excitement and there was even a little cheering in both services. Within 5 minutes the Worship Center was empty and there was a line of cars trying to get out of the parking lot. I love a church that gets excited about "crazy ideas."

Still, one big worry remained. Would we fill the trucks? I had a feeling that it could be big and I explained to Lolly Watson, the director of the Family Center, that were were talking about a lot of people here but I just didn't know. Would everyone participate? Would they really give their entire contribution to the Family Center? Would we fully embrace the idea? Again, the answer was "Yes!" By the time the second service started I was already hearing stories from around town. Sav-a-lot had to open two more check-out lines. A cashier at Dollar General asked "who are all these people coming in with shopping lists?" Someone said there were so many Maury Hills people in Wal-Mart that all we had to do was start a hymn and we'd had church. The manager at Big Lots said he'd work out a donation for us if we do it again. Then after second service dismissed I went out to check on the trucks. Jim Webb parked his SUV at Sav-a-lot and it was already full. He'd called in a second truck and they were loading it. I stopped by Wal-Mart and was absolutely floored. We had one of those huge box trucks and it was already 75% full. As I stood there, families would come up with 2-3 buggies filled to rim and by 12:30 the truck was completely stuffed from top to bottom. Way more than I expected! I love a church that implements "crazy ideas."

Finally, we headed over to the Family Center to put everything up. Lolly Watson had several six foot tables laid out in a small room to organize the goods. The first two trucks arrived and it filled up all the tables. She said thanks and they replied, "Oh no, this is just the start of it. There's much more on the way!" When we pulled in with the box trucks and threw open the doors the response was amazing. Speechless. She started calling in staff and board members to help them get everything sorted. We quickly overwhelmed the sorting room and starting stacking items in the hallway and another room. The coolest thing was that we didn't ask for volunteers to unload because we didn't know what to expect, but 25-30 members showed up unannounced and started unloading. I love a church that not only implements "crazy ideas" but embraces them.

That's about it. It was a great Sunday and I'm glad to have been a part of it. Thanks to our leaders for having the boldness, our ministry staff for having the skills to organize and make it happen, our volunteers for having the heart of a servant and our congregation for agreeing to do something "crazy." Here's to more in the future!

Game Changer

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 19:08:00 +0000

Last Sunday we explored the words of Jesus in John 14:15-27 where he promises his disciples the gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus says that he's preparing to leave them but when he does the Father will send "another Counselor" to be with them forever--the Holy Spirit. There are two key truths in this passage. One, the Spirit is God. We're not talking about God Jr. here or some lessor representation of God. The Spirit IS God!! Two, the Spirit "lives with you and will be in you." This means that the God of the universe doesn't live in some far off place. Instead, he lives in you. Let that sink in a minute.

It's not an easy concept to get your head around. We're so used to the idea of "God living in heaven looking down on us from afar" that it's hard to transition to the idea that "God is much closer than you think!" So close, in face, that he actually lives in your life. That's tough to comprehend. I mean I get the Old Testament concept of God dwelling in a building (tabernacle/temple) and the Gospel concept of God dwelling in a man (Jesus), but now through the Holy Spirit, God chooses to dwell in the hearts of every believer. Wow! The all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving holy God has taken up residence in your life! I don’t know about you, but that’s a game-changer.

To hear the rest of the message, visit my podcast page.

Ask and It Will Be Given?

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 15:29:00 +0000

Luke 11:9-10 reads "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." (NIV)

This passage has always been a little troublesome for me. I love the promise. Ask and you will receive! That's powerful. I'm just not sure it's true. Because I’ve been there, done that and it didn’t work. In other words, I prayed for really hard for something and didn't get the answer I wanted. I doubt I'm alone in that. How many of you have ever prayed really hard for something and didn’t get it? A job, a relationship, a healing, freedom from a particular sin? You asked but didn't receive, sought but didn't find, knocked but the door never opened. So how do you reconcile the promise of this passage with the reality of life?

Keep reading! Jesus continues in v. 11-13…"Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (NIV)

Notice those two words in bold. When Jesus says "ask and you'll receive" what's he talking about? How much more will your Father in heaven give you what? The Holy Spirit! Ah-ha!! This promise of answered prayer isn't a generic one, it's a specific one. If you ask for the Holy Spirit, you will receive him. Perhaps the reason I've struggled to understand this passage is I've been asking for the wrong things. I've been asking for more of God's presents rather than more of God's presence.

So I'm working on changing up my prayer life. Instead of asking for more health, safety, wealth, blessings, success, etc. I'm starting with asking for more of God's presence. I'm asking for more of the Holy Spirit in my life. More of God. Less of me. And that's a prayer he's always going to answer!

The full sermon is here.

Not-So-Scary Time

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 15:17:00 +0000

Since we're ramping up promotion for our annual Not-S0-Scary Halloween Party I thought it might be a good time to revisit this post. This is why we do the way we do it...Not-S0-Scary Thoughts.

5 Things Every Child Needs

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 19:51:00 +0000

Here's the video we showed at the beginning of yesterday's message. This explains the urgency and strategy of our children's ministry...

To listen to the message go here.

Dream 514

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 13:58:00 +0000

To learn more about this ministr see www.dream514.com

To hear the story behind this ministry listen to http://mauryhills.podomatic.com

People Helping People

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 19:36:00 +0000

To find out more about this ministry visit www.phptn.org.

To hear the history of this ministry listen to http://mauryhills.podomatic.com

Resources

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 13:28:00 +0000

Last week I concluded the women's study with some Q&A. You can listen here. I also provided a list of some resources for further study. Throughout the series I tried to read across all perspectives from the most progressive egalitarians to the most conservative complementarians. The following are some of the resources that I found most helpful and they represent conclusions similar to the ones we reached.

Books:
Two Views on Women in Ministry, James R. Beck (editor), 2001
Presents both sides of the issue but the essay “Women in Ministry: A Complementarian Perspective” by Craig Bloomberg most closely resembles our conclusions.

The Blue Parakeet: Rethinking How Your Read the Bible, Scot McKnight, 2008
Presents a more egalitarian view but has some good information on how to read and apply the Bible in today’s world.

Women in the Church: Reclaiming the Ideal, Carroll Osburn, 2001
A tough read but if you really want to dig into some scholarly research here’s your book.

Articles/Studies:
Role of Women in Ministry, Rubel Shelly, Woodmont Hills Church of Christ

Women in the Church, John Mark Hicks, Lipscomb University

Women in the Assembly: Issues and Options, John Mark Hicks, Lipscomb University

The Role of Women in the Church (13 week study by Dan Blazer), Brooks Ave Church of Christ

Sermons:
A Community Without Barriers, presented by Thomas Robinson at Manhattan Church of Christ (1999)

Women in God’s Service, 4 part sermon series presented by Rubel Shelly, John York and Wes Crawford at Woodmont Hills Church of Christ (2004)

Sermon presented by Mike Cope (audio only) at Highland Church of Christ (2005)

I Permit Not a Woman...

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 13:52:00 +0000

"But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet." 1st Timothy 2:12

At issue are the words “to teach” and “exercise authority.” That’s the only two things Paul addresses in this passage. That's an important distinction because many have used this verse to also prohibit women from leading prayer, reading Scripture, serving communion, leading worship, etc. None of those activities are addressed in 1st Timothy 2:12. The only way you can apply it to them is by saying that they somehow constitute exercising authority, but I don't see it. When someone leads prayer at our church they are not usurping anyone’s authority. The act of standing on stage and speaking words doesn’t equate to authority. When our men pass the communion trays I don't see that as some type of leadership role. It's an act of service. They're simply passing trays. The rest of the congregation does that as well it's just they are seated an pass them side to side instead of standing and passing them front to back. Again, I don't see anything here in 1st Timothy 2:12 that prohibits a woman from doing any those things. The only area of debate surrounds "to teach or exercise authority."

What exactly does Paul mean by that phrase? A lot of the discussion here centers around the question of what constitutes authority. The Greek word is authenteō. This is the only time that word is used in the New Testament and it can be taken either positively or negatively. In the negative sense it means “to domineer over.” Some believe that Paul is addressing a specific problem in Ephesus that relates to women domineering over men in their teaching. They point back to the immediate context of false teachers and say that women were obviously operating as false teachers and teaching in a domineering way and that’s what Paul is trying to address. That would make the command occasional and therefor not binding on all times. The problem is there's nothing in the context that suggests the false teachers were only women or that all of the women were teaching in this way. So how could silencing all women and only women solve the problem? Also, there’s good evidence that the word “authority” here is used in the positive sense where it simply means "to govern."

In that sense, Paul is not addressing the specific situation of “women teaching in a domineering way” (although that would certainly be forbidden of both men and women). Nor is Paul prohibiting women from any and all forms of teaching. What he’s addressing is “authoritative teaching.” Which means what? What constitutes “authoritative teaching” in the New Testament church? Or better yet, who provides that kind of teaching? You don’t have to look far to find your answer. Immediately after Paul gives his instructions to women he addresses the qualifications for elders or overseers. Again, the context is combating false teaching so the qualifications for those who will provide authority in the church is really important.

If you read those qualifications you’ll see that one of them is that an elder must be “able to teach” (3:2). That’s a qualification that’s not given for deacons. Then later in 1st Timothy 5:17 it says "The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching." Thus you see that preaching and teaching is one of the primary functions of an elder in the New Testament church. Then in Titus 1:9 he writes that elders must be "holding fast to the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict." Another primary function of elders, closely related to teaching, it to protect the doctrinal purity of the church. Why is that an important qualification for church leadership? Read Titus 1:10-16. Once again the context is false teaching. Thus, I see the activities of "teaching” and “exercising authority” in 1st Timothy 2:12 as being directly related to the role of an elder. That’s what I think Paul is restricting here. I also see this as a binding command for all times because of v. 13-14 where he appeals back to the created order of things and the principle of male headship.

In short, I still come out on the complmentarian side of the debate but I don't think the passage prohibits women from teaching in any and all circumstances. As long as the teaching is done under the authority of the church's eldership and in the proper manner then I think she would be free to speak. I realize there are other complmentarians who've come to a different conclusion (i.e. women can't teach at all) and I respect their viewpoint. However, I think we can both agree that this passage does not prohibit women from participating in many of the other activities that they are often prohibiting from leading.

Women Must Be Silent?

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:46:00 +0000

1st Corinthians 14:34-35 reads "The women are to keep silent in the churches; for they are not permitted to speak, but are to subject themselves, just as the Law also says. If they desire to learn anything, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is improper for a woman to speak in church."

The easiest and most oft-made mistake of Scripture is to read it out of context. If you do that with the above verse and treat it as a stand-alone command then it's message is clear. Women are to be silent in church. Period. Of course, I've never seen a church that consistently applied that passage, but that's for another post. The point here is if you take 14:34-35 at face value, without any qualification of any sort, it means exactly what it says. Women are to keep quiet. But is that a proper way to interpret the Bible?

We can't pull two verses out of hundreds of verses and say "Well, that's what the Bible says!" Instead we must read the Bible within context. We have to dig in and ask what was going on in that day and time that prompted Paul to write the things he did? What was his original intent? What was he trying to say to that church in that day and time? Only then can we ask how it applies to today's church in today's day and time.

So what’s the context of 14:34-35? It's found in chapters 11-14 where Paul addresses order in the assembly. He rebukes the Corinthian church because their assemblies are in chaos and their meetings actually "do more harm than good." He then addresses several areas in which there was disorder in the assembly (head coverings, the Lord’s Supper, the practice of spiritual gifts, etc). In each case, he gives instructions that will bring order to the assembly. It’s within that context that he tells women to be silent suggesting to us that perhaps the Corinthian women, or more accurately, the Corinthian wives were being disruptive in some way. Maybe they were asking unlearned questions (which explains v. 35) or they were speaking out of turn or practicing tongues improperly or gossiping. We don’t really know, but something must have prompted him to tell them to be quiet. Carroll Osborn takes this view and says…

"The real issue is not the extent to which a woman may participate in the work and worship of the church, but the manner. Paul's corrective does not ban women from speaking in worship, but stops the disruptive verbal misconduct of certain wives who are giving free rein to 'irresistible impulses' to 'pipe up' at will with questions in the assembly by redirecting these questions to another setting where they can gain access to information without causing chaos. Referring, as it does, to a very specific problem of disruptive questions by these women, 1st Cor 14:34-35 teaches that these particular wives, like the uncontrolled tongue speakers and prophets at Corinth, must defer to the assembly by voluntarily yielding to orderliness. The general principle that is to be applied to contemporary church life is that decorum is mandatory for all in the public assembly without regard to gender."

That’s a good point and the larger context supports it, but look at the more immediate context. Read the verses immediately preceding and following Paul's instructions to women (14:26-33, 36-40). Here you discover that women weren't the only ones Paul silenced. He also silenced tongue speakers when an interpreter wasn't present and prophets who spoke out of turn. Again, his primary concern is order in the assembly (v. 40) but perhaps there's more here than just silencing disruptive Corinthian wives.

The instructions on women fall within the immediate context of spiritual gifts, specifically the interpretation and evaluation of those gifts. Perhaps Paul is silencing women in regards to these activities. In other words, women are not allowed to evaluate or pass judgment on prophecies because this brings disorder to the assembly. Instead they must remain silent and yield to the authority of church leadership. This interpretation makes the passage fit a little more logically with chapter 11 where women are allowed to pray and prophesy in the assembly as long as they wore a symbol of authority on their head. This is the conclusion of Rubel Shelly who writes...

"The immediate context for the order about female silence comes three chapters later when Paul refers to the discernment of the churches leaders in making authoritative evaluation of and pronouncement about what the various speakers had offered the body. In order for these services to be orderly, the rule was "Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said" (11:29). Finally, the apostles or elders-who were the acknowledged leaders,overseers, and spiritual shepherds to the flock would sum up. They would verify this message and negate that one, validate this prophet and reject that one. These male leaders were to make a final judgement for the church in that city. In these situations of pronouncing an authoritative word that would guide the whole church, women were commanded to defer to the apostles or elders, the church's Spirit-appointed male leaders."

Which one is correct? Was Paul trying to silence disruptive wives or was he prohibiting women from making authoritative judgements? I'm not sure but those seem to be the two most plausible explanations I've read. Since we're so far removed from the original setting it’s hard to determine exactly what was going on and exactly what Paul meant to say. Regardless, in either case, the command to be silent seems to be cultural or occasional in nature and therefore not binding on the church today. As long as things are done in a orderly manner and under the authority of the church's elders then I believe women should be free to speak or pray in the assembly.

Women in the Early Church

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 21:36:00 +0000

What was the role of women in the New Testament church? That's a particularly important question for the church of today, especially those shaped by the Restoration Movement. It's also the exact question I tackled last Sunday. If you have 40 minutes, here's the audio. If not, here's a quick run down of the Scriptures used.

Acts 1:14-2:18. Both men and women were gathered together on the Day of Pentecost. Both were among the earliest disciples. Both received the gift of the Spirit and it appears that both spoke in tongues (i.e. publicly proclaimed the gospel in an unlearned language). See Peter's explanation in 2:17-18.

Acts 9:36. In the ministry of Peter, Tabitha is described as a "disciple" who is "abounding with deeds of kindness and charity which she continually did."

Acts 16:14. In the ministry of Paul, his first convert in Macedonia is a woman named Lydia. She influenced her entire household to be baptized and was an encouragement to Paul.

Acts 17:4, 12. Many of the "leading women" in Thessalonica joined Paul and a number of "prominent Greek women" in Berea came to believe.

Acts 18:24-26. Priscilla and Acquila taught Apollos (a man described as "mighty in the Scriptures"). They explained the way of God more accurately to him. This is at least one example of a woman instructing/ministering to a man.

Acts 21:8-9. Philip, the evangelist, had four daughters who were prophetesses.

Romans 16:1-2. Pheobe is called a "deacon" in the church of Cenchrea and the churches in Rome are instructed to assist her in whatever area she has need.

Romans 16:3-5. Priscilla and Acquila are referenced again. This time Paul calls them "fellow workers." A term he also applies to Timothy in v. 21. It indicates that they weren't just friends or converts of Paul but they worked alongside him in his evangelistic and missionary activities. It also mentions that they had a church that met in their house.

Romans 16:6-7. Andronicus and Junia are called "outstanding among the apostles." This doesn't refer to apostles in the sense of one of the twelve, but simply as one "sent by God." It's probably more similar to a missionary in today's context.

1st Corinthians 11:1-16. The instructions here concern head coverings but within them Paul tells us that women were praying and prophesying in the Christian assembly. Neither were silent activities. Prophesy is simply "speaking a word from the Lord." It could be spontaneous or planned and it was spoken for the edification of the church. Apparently both men and women engaged in this activity within the assembly.

Philippians 4:2-3. Here Paul mentions two women who were in a dispute with one another. They are described as having "shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel" and are referred to as "fellow workers" along with Clement.

Colossians 4:15. Nympha has a church that meets in her house. Many think that those who hosted churches in their homes didn't just serve as hostesses but also provided some level of leadership in the church.

1st Timothy 3:11. Within the qualifications for deacons Paul addresses "women." The exact meaning of this verse is in dispute because some think it should be translated as "wives" (the Greek can go either way). I lean towards the translation of "women" because I find it odd that Paul would give qualifications for deacon's wives but not elder's wives and there's at least one example of a woman deacon in the New Testament church (Pheobe).

From these texts I think you see many examples of women contributing to the establishment of the early church and the spread of the gospel. There are a couple of texts that seem to restrict their participation in church leadership and I'll be addressing them in the next two weeks.

Footnote: If you like Restoration history you might find this old post (What Happened to All the Deaconesses?) interesting as well.

But I Never Heard of Her at VBS!

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 14:09:00 +0000

Yesterday we looked at the role of women in the life of Israel. We learned that within the pages of the Old Testament there are several examples of women who played pivotal roles in the history of our faith. There were also some who served in prominent leadership capacities. It’s just that we didn’t hear much about them in Vacation Bible School.

VBS was a week long feast of red fruit punch, vanilla creme cookies, puppets, crafts, silly songs and flannelboard Jesus. It was the one time of the year where shouting, stomping, clapping and maybe a little dancing (ala "Father Abraham") was allowed in the auditorium. By the time I reached puberty I was the veteran of many a VBS. I still have fond memories of Cordell Hull moving the cars in the great "attendance race" or Yogie Spears falling off the stage during "Only A Little Boy David." But I digress.

In VBS we learned all about the great Bible characters and heros of our faith. Almost all of them were male. Granted, most of the characters mentioned in the Old Testament are male. It was a patriarchal society and men filled the majority of leadership roles. However, there were some notable exceptions...

Miriam. In Exodus 15:20ff it tells how Miriam led God's people in worship after the parting of the Red Sea. She was the sister of Moses and Aaron and served as a prophetess. Micah 6:4 refers to her as a leader alongside her brothers. Of course, Moses was the primary leader of God's people during that time but Miriam still played a significant role.

Deborah. She was a prophetess and judge (the only female judge in Israel's history). Her story is found in Judges 4:4ff. It tells of how she sat under a palm tree and people came to her for judgements. There's also an interesting story about the military leader Barak who wouldn't go into battle without Deborah by his side.

Huldah. She played a pivotal role in King Josiah's reforms. You can read about her in 2nd Kings 22:14ff. Huldah was a prophetess who was consulted by King Josiah's men after they found the Book of Law. She pronounced judgements and prophecies concerning the book and sent a word from God to the King.

There are was also Sarah, the wife of Abraham, who was mentioned as an example of faith in Hebrews 11 alongside men like Abraham, Moses, Joseph, etc. Then there was Ruth and Esther who have entire books dedicated to their stories. At birth of Jesus there was a prophetess named Anna who prayed over Jesus at the temple and Luke 2:38 says she “continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.”

What are we to make of all these examples? Why haven't we heard more about these women? What, if any, effect has that had on our views of women's roles in the church? Those are all questions that have been rumbling around in my mind. Apparently there was significant freedom for Israel's daughters in regards to leadership roles. Have things now changed? Does the New Testament put tighter restrictions on women or does it provide more freedom? What exactly can women do and not do within the New Testament church?

Those are some of the questions I'm preparing to tackle in the coming weeks. If you live in Columbia, we'd love to you have you join us!

A footnote...in the sermon I concluded that women were free to serve in any of the leadership roles within Israel save one. Women were not allowed to serve as priests. This was the central leadership post within the faith community and it was reserved for Aaron and his male descendents. Is that significant? I think so. I think it points back to the created order and the principle of male headship. That still leaves me squarely in the complementarian camp, but I'm not sure we've applied that principle very consistently in the modern church. More later.

What Does Creation Teach Us About Women's Role?

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 03:10:00 +0000

That was the topic I tackled last Sunday. In my opinion, Genesis is foundational to the whole question of women's role in the church. Many are tempted to skip over the Old Testament stuff and jump straight into the New Testament. That's a mistake. How we understand the creation account of the Old Testament has significant bearing on how we understand the so-called "restrictive passages" of the New Testament. Therefore, we dedicated a lot of time to Genesis 1-3 last week asking this question: "Does creation establish male headship or does it point to gender equality?" I won't try to repeat the entire 35 minute lesson, but here's my conclusion.

Looking at Genesis as a stand alone text, I find the egalitarian arguments [gender equality] very compelling. I don’t think there’s anything in the text that suggests male headship and female submission prior to the Fall. Both genders are created in the image of God and both are told to rule over the earth. The imagery of the "helpmate" and the "two becoming one" do not point to subordination but rather partnership and equality. The only thing that would hint at male headship is the fact that Adam was created first. Of course, to someone reading the Bible from a Western culture and mindset (like me) that means very little.

I'm the firstborn in my family but that doesn't give me any more authority or superiority over my siblings. We're all seen as equal. No one looks to me as the leader simply because of our birth order. However, that was not the case in ancient Eastern culture. The birth order meant something, and thus, it's logical that the created order meant something too. Perhaps a Jewish audience would have understood the creation accounts differently and seen a distinction between genders from the very outset.

Which brings me over to the complementarian side [male headship]. The "created order" points to differences between male and female and those differences existed prior to the Fall. They certainly didn’t look like what they look like now. Instead they existed in harmony and partnership. Male and female complemented each other without the power struggles and abuses we see in a fallen world, but the differences still existed. So ultimately I line up with the complementarians and say that male headship is a Biblical principle. That's not necessarily because of my interpretation of Genesis.

From the text alone I would not conclude that man was over woman simply based on the order of creation. However, that is exactly how the apostle Paul understood it (1st Cor 11:8-9, 1st Tim 2:13) and thus, how the New Testament interprets the Old Testament. In which case, I yield to the New Testament and Paul's understanding of Genesis as the correct interpretation. For one, the Bible has to be understood and interpreted in its entirety. Two, Paul's inspired and I'm not.

However, I would add that men have abused and misapplied the principle of headship in the past. We have not always exhibited Christ-like leadership as taught in Ephesians 4. Christ's authority was not used for power and domination, but sacrifice and service. I would also add that we've extended the principle of headship into areas that we shouldn't and we've denied certain freedoms to women that are not denied them in Scripture. We'll start looking at those in the next couple of weeks as we explore the role of women in the life of Israel, the ministry of Jesus and the early church.

Times Have Changed

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 15:29:00 +0000

I kicked off a new series on "women's role" last Sunday. Here's the video I started with...

If Ward was to say that about June today she'd probably clock him upside the head with those asbestos gloves. I think we all can agree that times have changed. 150 years ago in this country a woman couldn't vote or hold elected office. If she was married she couldn't own property, make legal contracts or seek a divorce from an abusive husband. There were very limited opportunities for higher education or working outside of the home and public speaking would get you branded a prostitute.

Things begin to change in the abolitionist movement of the mid-1800s. Many of the abolitionists were women and they began to realize that the things they were campaigning for were many of the same freedoms denied women. Things slowly began to change. In the early 1900s universities begin to see higher enrollments of female students (some began accepting females for the first time). The suffrage movement of the 1920s gained women the right to vote, World War II in the 1940s created the demand for women to enter the workforce and the Civil Rights era of the 1960s brought laws that protected against gender discrimination.

Things have continued to change in the last few decades as well. In today's society women have equal rights and opportunities as men. They are seen as equally intelligent and capable leaders and you'll find women serving as CEOs, doctors, lawyer, professors, soldiers, presidents, governers, senators, etc. All professions once off limits. There has also been a significant attitude shift in terms of how we treat women and view their role within society. To say that a "women's place is in the home" or to label them as the "weaker sex" is considered sexist and discriminatory. Try arguing that women are intellectually inferior to men or less qualified for leadership and see how far that gets you in today's culture. Regardless of how you feel about "women's role" we all have to acknowledge that times have changed. These changes have forced the church to deal with the issue as well.

As Rubel Shelly puts it..."It is an undeniable fact that changes in our culture raise questions for the church to address. It is neither practical nor right to pretend that these questions are unworthy of consideration. There is no virtue in a closed mind, and the world will never take a religion seriously that cannot address it's current concerns."

I wholeheartedly agree and that's one of the reasons that we've chosen to tackle the topic at Maury Hills. I know it's a highly controversial and emotionally charged topic but we can't shy away from issues simply because they're difficult. We have to take the questions of culture seriously and do our best to answer them honestly. Of course, that doesn't mean that we allow culture to dictate our answers to those questions.

To quote Rubel Shelly again, "As people who live under the authority of the Word of God, we must explore issues with a view to discerning and embracing the will of God. If prevailing sentiment and Scripture agree, we may move with the culture; if they disagree, we must stand with our best understanding of the Word of God and against culture."

It should be an interesting journey and it starts this week in Genesis 1-3. You can join us live or via podcast. Bring a Bible and a willingness to learn.

What Happened to the Blog?

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 20:33:00 +0000

That's a really good question. It's incredibly hard to find time to write these days. The growth of the church, the increase of our ministry staff, the family, the garden, summer, my habit of using all my excess free time to fish, etc, etc. I have all kinds of excuses. Of course, I know that if I really wanted to write I could make the time. I just don't.

I've even toyed with the future of the blog. I've questioned whether or not it's really worth keeping up. With Facebook and Twitter who has the attention span to read an entire article these days? And who reads anyway? Is it mostly folks from outside Maury Hills? If so, I thought about using the blog to post thoughts from my messages. I've already put all the thought and work in writing them so it would be easy to post excerpts online, but reading a sermon is different than hearing one. For that matter, writing one to be heard is different from writing one to be read so I'm not sure I'd save myself much time. Or is it primarily folks from Maury Hills? If so, they don't want another repeat of Sunday and if they want to keep up with my thoughts and activities most of them use Facebook. They also get that weekly email about what's happening at church so do they really need a blog article as well?

So I just don't know and while I'm pondering it I thought I'd write down what I'm pondering. I tend to think best when I think aloud. Or maybe it's that thinking aloud forces me to think best. I can't really remember.

Another Belize Reflection

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 16:31:00 +0000

The best part of the trip was deciding to sponsor a child through Dream 514. While clinic was amazing and God's hand was truly in it the moments that will stick with me the longest will be the times I spent with Sherlene.

Sherlene attends St. Martin's school which was in walking distance of the church where clinic was held. On Wednesday afternoon Lauren, Russ, Vic, and I walked down there in search of Sherelene. We found her in the school yard. I think it might have scared her a little that some random Americans at her school knew her name.

You see Sherlene and her brothers were recent applicants because their father passed about two weeks ago. I didn't know this when I chose her because I just wanted to sponsor a little girl and Jenny paired us together. While in the school yard I asked her if it would be okay if I sponsored her to go to school. She said yes and was very shy, which most of the kids are when you first meet them. We spent about fifteen minutes talking about what her favorite things are and telling each other about our brothers. She showed me her classroom, I gave her my address and told her how we could be pen pals. I invited her to come by the clinic the next day if her mom said it was okay. We said our goodbyes and the four of us walked back to the church.

The next morning I piggy backed on Abby's idea to buy some goodies for our kids. We went to Brodie's and I bought some toothpaste, a tooth brush, Disney princess pencils, hair accessories and a picture of us from the day before. It was my goal to make it back to St. Martin's sometime during the day to see her one more time. Thursday afternoon the clinic was slow so several of us went on a home visit where some baby girl twins, who stole the hearts of our group, lived. While we were gone Sherlene and her mom and two brothers came to the clinic looking for me. I didn't know this at the time.

After we visited the family, we were going by St. Martin's so I asked to stop to look for Sherlene. She wasn't at school. In fact the place looked pretty vacant because it was report card day. As we got back to the van and were about to leave I saw a little girl from far down the road that had on shoes like Sherlene's. I squinted but I wasn't sure if it was her. Then as we were about to leave I realized it was her and at the same time she saw our van and ran to greet me. She wasn't shy at all this time and we had another great visit. I gave her her goodie bag. I could see the thankfulness in her mother's eyes when she asked if I was Amber. Sherelene showed me her report card and she is a B student. It made me so proud of her to know she's a hard worker and to know that through this great program she has hope to take that hard work as far as she wants to.

It was the perfect way to end the trip. By the time we got back to the church the group was on the bus ready to leave. Those few minutes spent with Sherlene were the icing on the cake to so many wonderful Belize stories. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard planning this trip and those who contributed financially. Without y'all this wonderful memory would not be possible!

Amber Markham

One more thing...I see God's hand in pairing Sherlene and I together. I have been around those who are grieving a lot more than your average twenty year old and I feel that I can be an encouragement to her through this difficult time in her life.

Belize Reflections

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 21:34:00 +0000

I was just getting ready to summarize our Belize trip when I got this email from Mom. She does a pretty good job of wrapping everything up so I'll let her speak for the group. Also, I just posted all my pictures on Facebook. Go to www.facebook.com/russadcox. If you have pictures, post them on there and tag me! Here is Mom's final email to our team members...

Team!!!

Yea, we all made it home safe and sound!!! I know everyone's family was glad to see each of you. I just wanted to say thanks for all of your hard work. The team work was amazing. Each of you did jobs, some of which was way out of your comfort zones, and did them with a smile on your face.

Please give Jenny a big hug when you see her. She worked hours before, during and after our trip. She visited all of the schools and made many contacts while she was in Belize. I cannot put into words what she means to me and Dream 514.

We saw around 1,000 people in our clinic including the prison visit. Our construction crew framed a house and built projects for the Burrell Boom Church. The prison workers gave out 500 pair of shoes. Jenny and I visited around 27 schools and paid for applications for 160 (or more) children. The team members made home visits and school visits. We survived losing our hotel accommodations and rode out Tropical Storm Alex. What a TEAM!

I know each of you came in contact with someone who you will remember forever. Our last devo was to be devoted to those stories, but Alex roared in and the devo was called off. My story was a little boy who will forever remain in my memory. I had so many children request a sponsor and each time I had to say, "We could not do that this year, but maybe next." My last little boy came up without a parent and said, "Miss, will you be my sponsor?" I gave my little speech and he just stood and looked at me with hugh brown eyes. He said, "I will tell my grandmother and thanks anyway Miss." I watched him walk away and he looked back at one of our sponsored children holding his backpack and he had tears in his eyes. I will never forget that face or me having to say "I am sorry." I only hope that next year I will see him again and will sponsor him!!!!!

Remember Lincoln and Maggie will be in Columbia on July 7th. I have not received a time, but Russ will be forwarding you the info. Please try to join us with a visit. It will be their first and perhaps only visit to our area and they are so excited to see each of you. They will be giving us a report on the Dream 514 children and the work in Burrell Boom. Come and bring your families to meet them.

Thanks for a week of service to our friends in Belize!!!!

Love,
Connie

Day Six

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 02:57:00 +0000

Everybody is tired tonight. A full week of work. Lots was accomplished. Lots of stories to tell but I just don't have words right now. At devo we asked all the local ministers who hosted us this week to speak. They expressed gratitude for the trip but I really felt that we should be one thanking them. They are the ones who minister here year-round. And they are the reason that Dream 514 is getting off the ground. I really appreciate what they do and wish that I could spend more time with them discussing church and ministry. I also wish that I could get them to Maury Hills and we're one step closer!!

Lincoln and Margarita (Burrell Boom) will be coming through Columbia on July 7th. We're inviting everyone who has ever been on a trip, packed pills, served on a committee or sponsored a child. They'll speak to us about the work in Belize and talk about how our church is partnering with them! Spread the word to Hohenwald, Carmack or any of the other churches who've been involved in this work. Also, I just discovered that Lincoln Jr. is coming Heritage University this fall to begin studies for ministry. We just looked it up on the Internet together and it's in Florence (only 75 miles from our house). Jenny told him he needs to do a preaching internship at Maury Hills. He's already a good preacher and he'll be a great benefit to this country. That's about it. Pics are on Facebook.

Belize, Day Four & Five

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 02:00:00 +0000

Sorry for the lack of posts. Our Wi-Fi at the Yim Sann Hotel is spotty.

The last two days have been busy. We've seen over 500 at the clinic and Dr. Fann has pulled closed to 200 teeth. That's a lot of patients (mainly kids). It's unbelievable how hard he works down here. Of course, the rest of the team has worked hard as well. I think of Rick Richardson. He has to see every patient that comes through the clinic and explain the meds to them. He also got to go on a home visit today and he'll probably have to give another testimony sometime. It's a life-changing experience.

The other projects we've been working on are the school visits. Jenny has spent every day here driving around to all the schools. We have 27 schools and she has to meet the principals, pay for the students, etc. Every day I have 5-6 kids come up to me and ask to be sponsored by "Mrs. Jenny." It's heartbreaking. We need more sponsors!! Yesterday I had a 5 year old whose mother couldn't speak English ask me to please sponsor him for school. Then there was the 14 year old today who wants to go to high school but can't afford it. If you been thinking about Dream 514 but haven't taken any action, it's time to step up to the plate.

We also framed and roofed a "house" today. The word "house" is in quotes because I'm not sure that a single room 10'x12' building qualifies as a house. Especially since it will house a family of eight. It's hard to imagine. They have an existing house that's about the same size but the government is making them move one lot over. He asks us to help him move the house but we figured it would be easier to frame a new one and then let him add on to it. I actually got to hammer a few nails and it was a very rewarding experience. I put some pics on Facebook. They were clearing the land with machetes when we got there and five hours later they had a house.
Is it awesome? Yeah, it's pretty awesome.

Belize, Day Three

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 03:36:00 +0000

Sorry there's no "Day Two" report. It was on here somewhere but got lost. The team worshipped at three churches on Sunday. Burrell Boom, Belize City and Ladyville. Several of the team members preached, taught classes or lead singing. It was encouraging to worship with our brothers/sisters in Belize.

Today was an eventful day with a few unexpected turns. The clinic got off to a good start. A little slow but things will pick up as the word gets out. We also delivered 500 shoes to the prison and fitted the inmates. A little un-nerving because it's just an open courtyard and everybody's in there together. Also because I stick out like a sore thumb. Light-skinned redheads are rare in Belize. The unexpected turn happened in Belmopan.

Mom went to check on our hotel reservations at the Bullfrog and discovered that they didn't have any rooms for us. They'd double-booked them and we were out. The trouble is that's not only where we were going to stay the next four days but also where we planned to eat most of our meals. A slight problem. Mom drove around looking for another hotel and found a Chinese hotel outside of Belmopan. That's were we are. The rooms are really nice and we had some good Chinese food tonight. The other unexpected turn was for those of us working the prison. We got word that the Bullfrog gave away our rooms and that we were checking on a Chinese hotel. That's it. We drove to Belmopan with no way to get in contact with the team. We spotted the Chinese hotel and it was empty but they told us two Americans reserved 15 rooms earlier in the day so we figured we were in the right place. Everybody is settled now and everything's back on track. The adventures of traveling in a foreign country with no cell phones!

The most memorable moment of the day for me was the ride to the prison with Lincoln Jones. Lincoln is the preacher at the Burrell Boom Church and his family (Margita, Lincoln Jr., Jovannie, Crystal) has been instrumental in getting Dream 514 off the ground (as have Jason & Isela Garay and Melony Davis). Lincoln and I talked about ministry and how things were going in our perspective churches. He started talking about Dream 514 and how it was growing the church and making a huge impact on the community. I told him of the impact it was having on our church and how many in the congregation were involved. He said it was a "huge deal" and it's changing lives in Belize. I knew that but hearing it from him was very humbling to me. Those of you sponsoring kids don't know how big of a positive impact you are having here. Kids are getting an education and Lincoln's church is also using it as an opportunity to reach people for Christ. It reminded me of our church's vision to "serve the community in which we live." That's what the Burrell Boom church is doing. It also reminded me of how a single ministry (Dream 514) can bring two churches closer together. I sense a kindred spirit in Lincoln and the Burrell Boom Church. By the way, he's coming to Columbia soon!

That's about it. Tomorrow is the second day of the clinic and Jenny plans on visiting more schools. Awesome to see Dream 514 take root here!!!

Russ

Belize, Day One

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 02:57:00 +0000

Just wanted to let everyone know that the team entire team arrived safely to Belize. Connie and I went this morning and bought all the supplies we lacked for the backpacks and the team members helped us all afternoon with the greatly unorganized task(each grade level requiring something different) of packing them all...it got done. I'm not sure how, but it got done.

After some fried chicken at Friendship and an organizational mtg we are free until the a.m.

So, time for me to hang out!
Later,
Jenny

Belize, Pre-trip Report

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 12:35:00 +0000

Greetings from Belize,

Connie and I arrived here on Thursday about 10:30am and haven’t stopped since. We have had 2 great days. Each day we visited some of the schools in the Belize City and Burrell Boom Areas. We really enjoyed meeting more of our Dream514 sponsored kids! If you are a sponsor, you would absolutely love seeing your child in person (in their environment.) They are so excited to see you, yet they don’t even know you. Today, we went to one of the worst schools – Flowers Bank. They only have 36 students and we were able to sponsor all the students in the entire school – paying for their books and tuition! This was a real treat for us to help them so much! The principal was thrilled. One of our April team members is paying to feed these children on Thursdays (I have several pictures of this on our facebook page). They live quite a long walk from school and they go home for lunch. Usually, there is nothing at home to eat. There is opportunity here to feed them additional days in the next school year. A couple of the students live in a bus with their family…

We probably went to about 20 student’s homes and this was so wonderful to see where they live – with their entire family – mom, dad, brother, sister, cousin, grandma, etc. As we passed one home, we got out and talked to the kiddos. They were all hungry so we gave them everything we had – yes, even my precious almonds and mango.

We (maybe I should say YOU) are successfully making a lasting impact in the communities here. It really takes such a little amount of money/time to make a difference.

Some of our medical team members have arrived and most will arrive tomorrow. Then go to Burrell Boom Church on Sunday to worship with Lincoln and Margarita.

I also wanted to let you know that Lincoln did successfully back up into a very massive telephone pole. We thought someone hit us! It just scared us to death!

Thanks to everyone at home for your support and prayers.
Jenny

Belize Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 21:16:00 +0000

Once again this blog will turn into the "Belize Blog" for a week. I do this to keep family and friends of the team updated during the trip. It just costs way too much money to call and not everyone has access to email.

Two of our team members (my Mom & Jenny) left this morning around 4:00 AM. They should be in the country by now, but I haven't heard from them yet. They are delivering all the resources for our Dream 514 students. They have to visit 27 different schools in the next three days so pray for energy and safety. The rest of the team will leave on Saturday and I'll post something on here as soon as I hear from them. I leave on Monday. Here's the schedule for the week:

Saturday and Sunday we'll be in Belize City. We'll worship with one of three local congregations on Sunday and then spend the afternoon resting and preparing for the clinic.

Monday everyone will move to Belmopan and we'll operate our our medical/dental clinic through Thursday at the Garden City Church of Christ. We also have some plans to build an additional room on to a home, do some medical work in the prison and whatever other needs arise while we're there.

Friday we'll travel back to Belize City with a possible stopover in Burrell Boom. Hopefully we can because this church and it's ministers (Lincoln and his family) are so vital to the success of Dream 514. Then we'll head on to Ambergris Caye for a little relaxation before returning home.

That's about it. You're prayers are appreciated.

A Lesson in Grace

noreply@blogger.com (Russ) — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 12:08:00 +0000

I'm not a baseball fan but this story caught my attention: Robbed! Blown call costs Armando Galarraga a perfect game. In case you missed it, Detroit's Armando Galarraga was one out away from becoming only the 21st pitcher in MLB history to throw a perfect game. It was the bottom of the ninth with two outs. Jason Donald hit a little blooper between first and second base. The ball was cleanly fielded by Miguel Cabera and thrown to Galarraga who was covering first. It was an easy out. Game over. Let the celebration begin. But veteran umpire Jim Joyce stretched out his arms and called him safe. It was clearly a blown call. Galarraga knew it, Donald knew it, I even get the sense from watching the replay that Joyce knew it.

However, there's no instant reply in baseball and a call like that can't be reversed. The hit counted and Galarraga's perfect game was gone. The record books won't record his feat. So how did he respond? He just smiled and went back to the mound. What?! No kicking dirt on the ump's feet? No cussing him out? No cries of injustice? After the game, when Galarraga had a chance to review the play it was clear that he ump blew it. Joyce himself admitted it and even apologized to Galarraga for the mistake. So how did he respond then? He accepted the apology and said "nobody's perfect." What?! No appeal to the commissioner? No demands that the federal government come down and fix the problem? No bashing Joyce in the media?

Nope. He forgave him of the mistake and went on. And it's for that reason Galarraga will go down as a name I actually remember. I can't tell you the name of any of the other 21 pitchers who threw a perfect game. Two of them happened this year and I have no idea who pitched them or even what team they pitched for, but I can tell you about a Detroit Tigers' pitcher named Armando Galarraga who took a tough situation and handled it with absolute class. In an age of entitlement and selfishness he reminds us what sportsmanship looks like. Thanks for the lesson in grace.