Preparing the Church for a Post-Pandemic World.

When we are considering the post-pandemic world, our first consideration is to follow the leading of God. So, each of the following suggestions should be considered in light of the leading of the Holy Spirit. Let us follow the Lord Jesus Christ into whatever He is doing, for He is always doing the Father’s work. He is still present and at work.

The five areas I am prayerfully contemplating are - Perspective, Position (posture), Plan, Prepare, and Projects (Source – Henry Mintzberg, management theorist, HBR). The circumstances of the pandemic caught most of the global and local Church off guard. It indeed found me that way. It informs us that as the church, we get comfortable with our ways, too comfortable. In some ways, it is an Acts moment for the church. Moving us into areas and technologies, we have been slow to adapt. The five areas are expressed here in question form.

How will your perspective of church culture and identity change?

Perspective means the lenses we view the world through and ourselves. As a result of the pandemic in all likelihood, our culture and identity will change. Crisis’ are known to bring people together and expedite a collective spirit of endurance. Yet, this can also push people apart, with individuals distrusting one another and mostly looking after themselves. We must consider how our perspective may evolve. How prepared were we as a church culturally to deal with the pandemic/crisis? Will the ongoing circumstances bring our people together or drive them apart? Will we see the church differently when this is the crisis is over? Our answer will inform what we can achieve as the pandemic subsides.

What position/posture can your church reach during and after the pandemic?

Now is an opportunity for us to make smart strategic decisions, first, we must understand our churches position/posture in our environment. Who is our church in our environment/community? What role does it play in your ecosystem? We must also understand where we are heading. Are we able to shut down our operations and reopen unchanged after the pandemic? Will we have lost ground and need to regain it? Will we emerge and be recognized as a leading force in our communities fueled by the developments during the lockdown?

Right now, I hear many churches that are questioning their viability post-pandemic. Some churches have been able to accelerate their growth because of their values and were early technology adaptors. They were ready for this new environment. They invested in internet-enabled communications and relationship tools and had in place care and connection teams. Their online presence was already established, allowing them to differ and have a higher level of resilience. We should take appropriate steps now to map out our probable posture when the pandemic lessens.

What is your plan for bouncing back?

Yes, we need a plan to bounce back! Of course, we know a plan is a course of action to direct us to the posture/position we hope to attain. It should expound what we need to do today to achieve our objectives in the short and long term. Within our current context, we have to ask, what must we do to get through the crisis and go forward with meeting as the church once the crisis ends?

If we fail to plan, it will only exacerbate the disorientation already in a complex environment.  So, when we begin to develop the steps we intend to take, we need to think broadly and deeply with a long view of the future.

How are you preparing to create and execute your plans and projects?

Preparedness, it is critical we assess our churches in this area. Are we ready and able to implement and accomplish the plan and projects we’ve outlined? Everything has shifted to online or remote, so how do we continue to use the internet. Preparedness needs attention at the individual, team, and congregational levels. There are a more significant number of resources in use that have been available but not previously engaged.

Creating a worksheet around these five strategic questions can help plot our current and future moves. Being aware that congregants/parishioners will remember how we reacted during this crisis. For example, how we exercised compassion, caring, and generosity during a time of shortage could have a significant effect on our relationships going forward.

What new projects do you need to launch, run, and coordinate?

Once we have answered the questions above and created your worksheet, it should point to a set of projects for tackling your coronavirus related problems. Remembering a challenge is an opportunity we need to prioritize and coordinate whatever initiatives that will establish our future capabilities. Of course, be aware that starting numerous projects that all depend on the same essential resources. Resources such as individuals, internet technology, video equipment, space in the facilities, and finances must be considered, for example. Engaging too many initiatives creates debilitating conflict for resources that might delay or sabotage our responses, plans, and projects.

This crisis has unprecedented impacts. Some are still saying the worst is yet to come, while others are saying the worst is over and we should reopen. Confusion abounds as these competing voices are calling for our allegiance. As followers of Jesus Christ, we have one voice to tune our ears and hearts to hear His. Churches should act today with responsibility, love, compassion, and generosity if we are to bounce back and gain ground now and in the future. If we do this, it will help our communities, states, nation, and the world recover and, in the process, become more resilient for the Kingdom of God

Part 2: She - Women in Ministry

Part 2: She - Women in Ministry

When was the last time you saw a mother living out her maternal drive?

How has your experience with your mother shaped your perception of God?

Throughout the Bible, God (YHWH) is described as compassionate. In Hebrew, the original language of the Scriptures, it’s the word ‘raham.’ It’s also the word for ‘womb.’ So God is compassionate, does this means God is womb-like?

The gentleman piped up saying, “Wait! God doesn't have a womb!”

I said, “Please, fully listen to me and I will explain.”

 The image presents a feminine side of God’s being. When you hear that God is compassionate, what stories come to mind?

For me, it reminds me of Job. Listen to the Scripture; God asked Job “And does the rain have a father? Who sires the drops of dew? From whose womb comes the ice? And who gives birth to the sky’s pale, thick frost?” Job 38:28-29 (Message)

Obviously, this is Hebrew poetry, so it is hard to take it literally. But, these images can be very helpful in describing the divine, but Jesus said that God (YHWH) is a Spirit. And spirit has no shape, it has no form, it has no physical essence as we understand existence. We are corporeal beings created in the image of God as God’s image bearers.

Here is what I mean, God is in essence beyond male and female. Or perhaps you could say it more accurately; God transcends and yet includes what we know both as male and female. “God created us human beings; he created us godlike, reflecting God's nature. He created us male and female.” Genesis 1:27

A man is the image of God, just as a woman is the image of God.

Do you think of God as male or female?

Why do you believe you view God this way? We have been trained, indoctrinated to see God from a patriarchal cultural perspective. The Scripture clearly teaches there is a masculine dimension to God, and there is a feminine aspect of God. Holistically, God transcends both male and female within God’s being. We know because as the image bearers we represent the characteristic of the divine.

The early Christian church was revolutionary in following the example of Jesus, the Anointed one. Women were the first witnesses to the resurrection, even though their testimony is considered of less value than a man's culturally, which was groundbreaking enough in its day. Let me say it again; women were honored as the first witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus, the Anointed One. This is a sign of God (YHWH) creating a paradigm shift or corrective shift in all cultures and societies. A move back towards the garden where Adam and Eve walked side by side communing with Elohim/YHWH in the cool of the evening.

Consider this; it was women who supported Jesus in his teaching and traveling throughout his ministry. Women helped pay for his journies. In the letter to Galatians, the Apostle Paul writes that in Christ, in this new reality of the resurrected Jesus, the Anointed One –  

“In Christ’s family, there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us, you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Galatians 3:28 (MSG)

Many scholars argue this is the first place in human history where somebody argued for the equality of sexes. It was the Apostle Paul, the person whom you use to try to establish the complementarian view of the women, and here Paul confirms the egalitarian position of the sexes.

If you don’t grasp the full understanding of God’s being, transcending beyond what is male and female, then you miss out on God’s leadership, you won’t have God’s full wisdom, his/her voice, his/her perspective. You’re not just missing her; you’re missing something central to the very core of God’s characteristics.

How does your view of women affect your view of God?

How does your perspective of God affect your view of women?

I always say flip your questions around to force yourself to challenge your opinion. You may just discover something remarkable through this critical thinking exercise.

A woman should not be made to feel like a second-class member of the Jesus movement; maybe it has been taught to you blatantly, or it has been picked it up subtly, either way, it is just not right. It is not the Jesus’ way because it’s not what Jesus had in mind. Sometimes equality gets confused with a difference, as if we are all the same, and what gets lost in the process is the uniqueness of each of us being who we were made to be the unique image bearers of the living and loving God.

So we don’t need to run from the differences, we should embrace them. It’s all a reflection of the creativity, of the diversity, of the variety of the God who’s larger than any of our language.

In the book of Isaiah, he speaks to the Israelites who are in exile:

The Lord, your God, says: “As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you.” Isaiah 66:13 (TNIV). Of all the images Isaiah could use, Isaiah essentially says to them, have you ever seen a mother comfort a child? Yes, that is God-like, it is so divine.

When was the last time that you needed comfort?

When the difficult times come, would you trust God to comfort you?

When you see a mother doing her mom thing, when a mother’s heart breaks for her children, she is tapping into the very nature of who God is and what God is like and that is a gift. It is grace; it is divine.

Have you ever considered God to be like a mother? Why or why not? For those who have not had a real mother figure, maybe this will assist in your healing as you connect with this aspect of God’s being and character.

Is your view of God limited by a gender?

If so, do you think maybe you are missing out on the aspects of God’s nature and move deeper into a relationship with Jesus, the Christ?

Now may you embrace God, who’s larger than any of our concepts of what is male or female. May you celebrate all of the images and pictures and metaphors that help us better understand who and what God is like beyond gender.

Blessing,

Dr. Douglas Balzer

Part 1: She - Women in Ministry

She – Women in Ministry

One of the challenging subjects still in circulation throughout several branches of Christianity is the issue of women in ministry. It seems every generation must revisit this issue. Some hold on doggedly to the complementarian ideology that men are the only ones who are permitted to be Apostle, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, and or Teachers. Their argument for the position is supposedly supported by Paul, the Apostle and the writer of much of the New Testament contained within the Bible. The first thing I do not want to do is rehash the same old argument from Paul’s letter to Timothy. It is well known or at least enough articles are circulating about this case. I could do it for you, but the mood just doesn’t strike me at this time. Instead, what I would rather do is recount the narrative of a recent encounter I had with a wonderful Christian couple who are or were complementarian. They hold the position women should not be ministers such as pastor over a congregation or have authority over men.


Our conversation was lovely. You can interpret what you want out of this statement. Maybe it was or maybe it wasn’t.


The conversation opened up with them because they recognized several item on the lid of my laptop. It is covered with a collage of various stickers, pictures and words. The decor on the laptop is there to open up conversations with people, it works. She took the bait, and I think they got more than they bargained for in the discussion that followed.


When I introduced myself as an associate pastor serving under a woman pastor, this troubled them, and they wanted to set my theology right concerning the position and authority of women in ministry.


They presented the usual arguments from Paul's letters to Timothy – I let this go on until they had exhausted their arguments. I listened intently encouraging them to state their position completely. I urged them to “say more” until they finished. Then, I said, “Maybe you're right.”


The distinction between our views of women and ministry were as evident as a purple Elephant in the room.


Now, when confronted by a person or people who are deeply entrenched in their rhetoric or ideology I like to say to them – “maybe your right.” I don’t do this to be disingenuous, but to at least honor their thoughts and opinion. Okay, I will admit it, I do mean “Your wrong.” But I do not want to end the discussion and open them up to another perspective. I don’t expect to win them over, but at least I desire to engage them in some critical thinking about their position. Besides it is a good exercise for myself to give answers for my dogma and theology. To be held accountable to others.
They most likely wouldn’t want to listen to what I have to say if I did this directly so, I do it indirectly to allow the flow of thought to be an equal exchange. The arena of critical thinking about Christian dogma and theology is essential because it has everything to do with how we view God’s person.


Women in ministry are a crucial issue in the Free Methodist Church. Therefore, the conversation was meaningful and must be addressed, but not in a typical manner.
 
So, I asked the couple to please listen to me entirely in the same way I treated them. They kindly agreed, and I began to lay out my argument for women in ministry, via Paul the Apostle as the source supporting my position. This capture their attention and they wanted to another perspective on the issue. I stated that we need to see the other places where Paul references women and ministry because much of what influences my position is what is clearly in the open, that is accessible to everyone, but usually ignored throughout Paul’s writings. Frankly, they admitted they had never been presented with another view of the problem, especially with Paul as the source.

So, I began laying out the case. The conversation started with explaining how women in ministry became an issue in the when Emperor Constantine recognized Christianity as an official religion and women in leadership was challenged due to the male dominance of Roman/Greek culture.

Before this paradigm shift, women comprised the much of Jewish and Gentile leadership in the church outside of Jerusalem. There are many women the apostle Paul recognized in ministry. They were Phoebe, whom Paul calls a presbyter and pastor of the church at Cenchrease near Corinth. There were Prisca, Pricilla, Julia, Nereus’ sister, Tryphena, Tryphosa and Rufus’ mother, Junia whom Paul praises as a prominent Apostle. St. Chrysostom seems to confirm her Apostleship explicitly by writing, "Indeed, how great the wisdom of this woman must have been that she was even deemed worthy of the title Apostle.” There also was Chloe, who lead the congregation in Corinth, all women Paul names to acknowledge and praise their ministries.
 
Now, it doesn’t make sense to say, logically or critically thinking, that the Apostle Paul clearly states women shouldn’t be in ministry when he openly accepts and praises them for their ministries. Especially when he recognizes them in pastoral roles and even as an Apostle having authority and teaching positions for whole congregations or regional area they administered.


Still, I have to ask, do we understand God’s intent for the relationship between men and women?


When I view the world around us, I recognize it is a broken world, but at the same time is filled with beauty, wonder, and awe. One of the greatest wonders I have ever seen or experienced is the maternal drive of the female of particular species. Growing up on and around farms gave me a great appreciation for the female of the species.  

Many animals exhibit the drive to protect their young at any cost. It wasn’t the bull that worked to keep us away from the calves; it was the heifers. The bull couldn’t care less. He had a docile nature. We could climb on his back, and he would ignore us and keep on grazing. Our grandparents were certainly grateful for the character of that bull.


The geese, ducks and bandy chickens, well, they are another story to tell. Your life was in peril when you approach those small chickens. Bandy chickens can be fierce protectors of their young. Those hens struck fear into even the bravest farm boy or girl. The old goose, oh she was the worst. She would lower her head and stretch out her neck then chase you relentlessly. Then when she got ahold of you with her beak it hurt as she grabbed and twisted, then did it again just for good measure. I don’t think we ever learned our lesson though as we continued to take risks with her goslings.


The maternal instinct, this drive is considered to be fairly universal. Reflect on the women in impoverished areas of the world. When I visited at Medical Teams International’s local center, there was a display illustrating the maternal drive of the women trying to serve their children.

Most Mothers will do whatever it takes to care for their children. They carry their jars to fill with their daily water, fill up their jar, and then they walk the hours needed just so that their children will have water. Then they do it the next day. And they do it the next day. And they do it the next day.

There is this maternal impulse, this ancient nurturing instinct and it transcends time. It transcends culture; it transcends economics. It transcends species. There is an old mothering inspiration, and it’s also a divine impulse.

Blessings,

Dr. Douglas Balzer

Part 2 coming soon