Would Jesus Eat Frybread?

So much happens each month, that there's no way I can cram it all into my monthly newsletter! Last month a couple of my teammates traveled out to Toppenish, Washington for an annual Nations conference called "Would Jesus Eat Fry Bread?"

Nations is a movement of Cru for Native American college students, one of Cru's many contextualized ministries (more about this later). The ministry exists to honor Native American students and faculty by restoring their lives and culture with Jesus Christ.

The "Would Jesus Eat Frybread?" conference is a chance for Native students from around the US to gather together to learn from each other. Similar to TCX (our regional Christmas Conference), students hear from speakers, worship with each other, and have a chance to get to know other Christians who are also Native.

The conference is a partnership between Cru, Intervarsity (another college ministry), and the Calvin Institute of Worship. Over 175 people attended, representing more than 55 tribes from places like North Carolina, New Mexico, South Dakota, Hawaii and Alaska.

For many students, this was the first chance they've had to talk about their questions regarding their identity as Native Americans and Christ-followers- Am I native enough? Can I be a native and a Christian?

I mentioned the word "contextualization" - this is the process of making the gospel accessible within a particular cultural context in an understandable and culturally meaningful way without losing the truth and integrity of the message.

For our Nations movement, this means providing worship using Native drums and languages. This means getting the blessing of a tribe and it's elders before hosting an event (hence my trip out to Washington earlier this year, months before the conference began). Last year, students at the conference took communion using frybread and grape soda, staples in native culture. Instead of staying at a hotel and meeting in a conference room, the gathering was held on the reservation with chairs set up in a circle.

The point of contextualization is to put the gospel in a more understandable, culturally relevant form by using elements of a people's language, customs and traditions. The message of the gospel, that redemption and salvation are possible through Christ, does not change. The method of presenting and transferring the gospel is dependent on the culture.

The website "Reaching Internationals" clarifies this concept with a great list of what contextualization is not:

• It is not a watering down or compromising of the gospel.
• It is not assimilating one culture into another.
• It is not segregation. It is not separate but equal. The goal of contextualization is communication. Contextualization may result in more separation but only to the degree that is necessary to produce truly indigenous leaders and movements.
• It does not mean each culture only reaches its own (whites/whites; blacks/blacks, etc).
• It is not going after corporate ‘diversity’ as an end in itself.

It was a privilege to be a small part of this conference. Due to my other travels this fall I stayed back in Minneapolis and did not attend, but I was able to assist in some of the travel arrangements for participants, booking more than 50 flights for students across the US.

(Next year, the conference will be held in Northern Minnesota on the Fond du Lac Reservation so I'm hoping to attend in person).

Expedition.

This year, Cru sent out 2 teams of interns on European missionary endeavors. The teams are called "Expedition" Stint Teams and spend one month in a different city, for a whole year. Here's a brief update from their time in Rovno, Ukraine earlier this fall:

"While one of the teams was in Rovno, Ukraine, a local pastor saw how the students were challenged with the gospel and how well they responded. Taras, the pastor, shared, "It should not have taken a team of Americans to motivate us to do the work that we should have already been doing ourselves, but it did. Thanks to this group of Americans, we (in our church) will now be taking the Gospel to students." 

As with any short-term missionary endeavor, it can be easy to question effectiveness. Our Expedition teams are no different, as they spend only 1 month in each location. But the above story is an example of lasting fruit left behind after our team moves on.

We seek to be what Jim Elliot prayed to be many decades ago:

“Father, make of me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road;
Make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another
on facing Christ in me.”                   - Jim Elliott

A line on a page.

This fall I took a Church History class online. On almost a weekly basis I was astounded at how little I knew about the history of Christ followers. It was fascinating to learn more about whole centuries of history, and people who sacrificed so much to make the name of Christ known.

Our textbook for the class was 500 pages (no, I didn't actually get all of it read) and it covered pretty much the entire 2,000 years of Church History.

I happened to be paging through the last chapter one day, when a familiar phrase jumped out at me: Campus Crusade! We showed up in the textbook on page 499, in reference to Pope John Paul II, who attended a Cru retreat as a young man in Poland (here is a very interesting article about his interactions with Cru).

After reading the textbook, listening to hours and hours of lectures, and memorizing dozens of names of important people from church history, I was surprised to see Cru get even one line on the second to last page of my text book.

There have been so many instrumental people, churches, groups and movements throughout the last 2,000 years. Seeing Cru near the end of the book really put into perspective how small the organization is in relation to everything else that's happened in history. It's easy to assume Cru is the end-all-be-all when you immersed in Cru culture - even though that is certainly not true.

Seeing Cru in the textbook also gave me a new perspective on seeing how far we have come as a greater church body, and how close we really could be to seeing the Great Commission fulfilled.

Imperfections & First Impressions.

Over the last couple months my church has been doing renovations on our new building. It's been really fun to see the building transform into the home of New City Covenant Church. A ton of work has gone into our multiple kids' ministry rooms, our main welcome area that we call the "gathering place," and the kitchen/fellowship hall where we have a meal after every single Sunday service. Things are looking great! There are still some structural things to fix, but really the only main cosmetic thing left to do is the sanctuary.

The thing is, updating the sanctuary was the first item on the to do list, in my mind. I thought it would be the priority because it seems like it's the most important room in our building, and the place where people spend the most time.

A couple weeks ago I had invited a friend to check out New City, and she came today. And if I'm being honest, I felt a little bummed that the sanctuary didn't look nicer. Sure, we just put up new drywall and a gave the place a fresh coat of paint - and it looks really good! - but we still have scuffed floors and beat up pews and hobnail milk glass chandeliers that are so old they're likely worth a few bucks.

Yet, it didn't seem like the imperfections in our worship space mattered to my friend. After the service, she commented on how real we all were. We weren't putting on a show.

Cue the light bulb.

Why do I care so much about the faded carpet and well-worn pews? Three years ago when I started attending my small church plant, we met in a banquet room in a rec center (which also happened to host hockey games each week during our church service). The room was not very aesthetically pleasing, to say the least.

What kept my interest in the church was the people, the preaching and the praise (see what I did there, with the alliteration?) I was able to connect with others in a meaningful way, grow deeper in my faith through sound, biblical preaching, and worship God in a way that made my musical heart very happy.

I didn't care about the cold fluorescent lighting or having to navigate a noisy hockey crowd every week. The community kept me coming back.

Now that we have a building to update and keep up, why should it be any different? I hope we as a church don't buy the lie that we need to appear to have everything together in order for new people to like us. We're so much more than the color we paint our walls or the type of pews we have.

And I hope I don't buy this lie. I almost didn't invite my friend to come check out New City, because I wanted to wait until the church was completely finished. Then I could impress her by showing off our new digs. What's important is not the light fixtures above us or the carpet below us- but the people around us. I hope we continue to be a community of grace and truth, who seeks to love and serve Jesus and those around them.

When we want to know what's next.

In the last month, three friends of mine have gotten married. As much as I joke about going to/standing up in so many wedding...I love seeing my friends wed their amazing fiances. I'm so excited for each of them as they embark on a new chapter in their lives together. I can't wait to see where God leads each couple in the years to come.

I was thinking about one of these wonderful couples the other day, and a thought popped into my head: I wonder when they will have a baby?? I bet they'll get pregnant really quick. In fact I should actually make a bet with a few other people... I think I would win.

I dismissed these thoughts and went about my business. But later that night as I was settling in to sleep, I realized that my flippant thought was actually pretty similar to another flippant thought I often hear others voice, out loud, to my face:

Do you think you'll ever get married?

When I hear this from people, the hair on the back of my neck stands up. I get a little flushed in the face. I start to sweat. Before the person (usually a total stranger, but also sometimes a close friend) can even complete their question, I know where they are heading.
 What I was doing to this friend (in my head) is pretty much exactly what others do to me.

For better or worse, we are always looking for the next big thing. Waiting in anticipation for what's to come. What is it about us that compels us to be constantly thinking of what we don't have, or what might be next, even if it's uncertain? Whether it's pressure from family or the people around us, or society in general- we must always be looking for what's next.

I refuse to treat my married friends this way, bugging them about when they will achieve the "next thing" - whether it's purchasing a house, having a baby or some other major life event.

Sometimes we do this without thinking. Maybe we're trying to fill an awkward silence or just trying to ask someone a more deep question than "How are you?" or "What do you think about this weather we're having?"

Whatever the intent, I refuse to "go there" with my newly married friends.

Excersing (the tiny) part of my right brain.

I'll never forget the day my Mass Comm advisor dropped a semi-huge bomb on me: I accidentally took the wrong class during my Sophomore year of college. Because of this, I would not graduate on time.

I was shocked. Because I was earning two separate bachelor's degrees (a BBA and a BS) I always had to be super on top of my schedule. Fitting in my 160+ credits was a nightmare. It was already going to take me 4.5 years to earn these 2 degrees (which actually isn't bad at all).

But now...a mistake? My adviser showed me the handbook. I had been using an old one to determine my graduation requirements, and I quickly realized that I took Digital Imaging instead of Photo Journalism. Probably not that big of a deal. But, I was stunned. I was always so on top of everything - how did I miss this?

My fabulous adviser ended up pulling some strings and got the Dean to sign off on the Digital Imaging class as a substitute for PhotoJ. Hallelujah. I could graduate on time and not have to stay a whole extra semester for one class.

Looking back on this situation now, I'm SO grateful I took the wrong class. Our professor for Imaging was a legit graphic designer with her own established company and decades of experience. She taught me so much about working with the Adobe Creative Suite- PhotoShop, InDesign, etc. She saw potential in me and really helped me push myself to tap into a creativity I didn't know I had.

I'm no graphic designer, but I would not have the design skills I have now if it wasn't for that scheduling screw up. It's funny how God worked that one out. Now, I love getting to flex my (small) creative muscle, especially in designing some materials for my church. Thought I'd show you a few things here that I've done. I also get to tap into my creativity when writing my monthly newsletter, and I've been known to do a project or two for friends. Enjoy!

Introverts and Extroverts.

I basically know nothing about Susan Cain, but I love her.

Her book "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking," now holds a place in my top 5 favorite non-fiction books of all time. 

Several chapters in "Quiet" are devoted to introducing (and then debunking) the myth in our society of an "extrovert ideal" - that in order to be well-liked, successful, or a leader, you must be an extrovert. She defines this ideal as: "the omnipresent belief that the ideal self is gregarious, alpha and comfortable in the spotlight...Introversion, along with its cousins sensitivity, seriousness and shyness- is now a second-class personality trait.

Cain introduces an incredible amount of psychological and medical research in many of her chapters, especially those on the idea of personality and temperament. She closes, appropriately so, with a few chapters about living as an introvert in an extrovert world (and succeeding at it).

At the end of the day, I won't remember the intriguing stories, insightful comments or surprising statistics about anything Cain discusses in her book. But weeks after finishing the book I think about it daily, because it has greatly encouraged me to just be myself. It's given me insight into who I am, and helped me see that I need to be honest with myself about how God has made me. I have to live out who I am, regardless of what the world may think or expect of me. Dare I say, neither introvert nor extrovert is the true ideal - God made them both, made people to be one or the other or a mix of both. And that's good.

If you're an introvert, or dating/married to one, or you have one in your immediate family, or if you don't understand them, (...or even if you think you do)... I suggest checking out "Quiet."