Do you have time for a party?

¹⁸ And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

We just celebrated the second anniversary of our new church plant.  It is difficult for me to believe that it has been two years….really?

A great deal has taken place over the last two years, some of which has been extremely encouraging and uplifting, while other happenings have been tedious and discouraging.  Neither of them has changed my love for the church.  The church is beautiful, absolutely radiant.

Certainly, when I use the term, I am referring to the biblical understanding of the chosen and called out group of diverse people, hopelessly lost, but wonderfully found in the sovereignty and mercy of our all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving creator; the lovely bride redeemed and cleansed by the enamored divine husband. The church is a wonder.

However, I am disturbed by my own tendency to revert to images that involve steeples and candles at the mention of the word, but I am determined to fight these false images in my own heart and mind in order to embrace a relational understanding that invokes passion for God Himself, as well as His most treasured creation.  Even in our most hopeless of situations and conduct, our beloved redeemer finds us in our hiding and recreates something wonderful. Certainly, this truth creates undying passion for His person and sacrificial commitment to His desires and mission.

Our anniversary celebration, although simple, proved to be significant for me.  I looked around at a packed house, encouraged and challenged by the number of youth.  Honduras, as a nation, is one of the youngest in the world, with more than 50% under the age of 18.  I would say that our group was more like 80% young.  After a meal of tamales, arroz con pollo and the celebratory cupcake, we discussed our hopes for the future. 

This morning, while working through the church dream lists from each of the dinner tables, I was impressed by the combination of vision and silliness. 

As church leadership, it is always a good idea to listen to the hopes and dreams of others.  It can be inspiring, but most of all revealing.  While trying to decipher the Spanglish, I am aware of some misinterpretations regarding the nature of church, as well as misunderstandings about our own particular vision and philosophy of ministry.  This is helpful and necessary. 

We are often unaware of the beliefs and opinions around us. We assume that attendance implies a certain level of understanding and agreement and there is no other way to affirm or correct that assumption. We need to ask the right questions and carefully listen to responses.

As the anniversary meal finished with the normal chatter, babies crying and spilled Coca-cola, we entered into a celebration of the Lord’s supper.  The attempt to create new church traditions is difficult, yet overwhelmingly necessary. 

The Lord ’s Supper is always powerful for me, but I have come to realize that we all may have strayed too far away from the Biblical model.  How do that little piece of bread and that tiny cup of grape juice begin to pattern the millenniums of traditional Passover celebrations?  We have somehow reduced the most significant Biblical anniversary party into a melodramatic ritual tacked onto the end of an overstuffed worship service.  How have we wandered so far away from the remembrance of salvation mixed with wonderful food and the extended family atmosphere?  How can we observe in 10 minutes what takes an Orthodox Jewish family 4 or 5 hours?  How could we possibly instantaneously grasp the historical significance of the liberation from Egypt and the parallel with our own new-found freedom?

As a testimony to the complicated nature of our church experience, we would find it completely impossible to fit the historical Biblical celebration into our scheduled format.  The early church would have had no problem enjoying this party and they would have anticipated these festivities all year long. 

So, if our church style is too complicated for a party, what must we change?