FLOW
Jack Radcliffe
12/26/2008

Have you ever been bored, disenchanted, disgruntled, or disappointed in your spiritual life when it doesn’t seem to be moving along the way you’d hoped it would? Has that translated into criticism of your church? Have you ever decided to quietly disappear from your congregation because it doesn’t seem to be “feeding” you anymore? Have you ever joined the multitudes of church shoppers?

Church demographers and marketers know that, at our core, we are consumers. We consume our faith the way we buy cars, try on clothes, or make our selections at the grocery store. If service is provided the way I want, I’ll “buy in” or make an “investment.”

It seems that we evaluate churches based on consumer satisfaction. Like the stock market, as long as numbers continue to climb, we’re invested. When things get rough, the numbers drop, or consumer confidence is down, we evaluate our involvement—leaving the option open to roll our investment over somewhere else or shop at another place. A consumer approach to church may make sense if all we are about is product, programs, or customer satisfaction. However, is this what Jesus had in mind when he birthed the church?

The beginning of the second chapter of Acts tells the story of the dynamic way the church of Jesus Christ began. I think it would be incredible to have been in Jerusalem on that day. To witness the outpouring of the promised Holy Spirit in such a powerful way would rank second only to being in heaven. To see the faces of the people from all over the known world gathered for the Festival of Pentecost as they heard the uneducated disciples speak in their hearers’ native languages would have been incredible. To actually hear Peter describe all that was happening and why it was happening would have changed my life forever.

A lot of attention has been given to this historic Pentecost event. Author Jamie Buckingham tells a story that puts it in perspective for us. While visiting a dam on the Columbia River, he made a discovery. He’d always thought that the water spilling over the top of a dam provided the power, not realizing that it was just froth. That day he learned that deep below the surface, turbines and generators transformed the power of tons and tons of water to electricity—quietly, without notice. The flashy froth on top caught his attention but disappeared as quickly as it appeared. What made the river flow wasn’t what was seen on the surface but what happened below.

Living in the powerful flow of God’s Spirit isn’t about the events seen in the beginning part of Acts 2. Later in Acts 2:42-47, we see what was below the surface, what gave the community of faith its power:

All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer.
A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity—all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

The real miracle of this Pentecost event was in the new community that was formed. The first Spirit-filled church was an interesting group—maybe a little bit like us. They were a broad mix of people from a variety of life situations, socioeconomic backgrounds, personalities, and educational backgrounds. And yet they were a community of people who were learning to trust and depend on each other.

The reason people were in awe and wanted to join in wasn’t because of their flash, organization, or big events. It was because of the commitments they made to one another to learning, being soul mates, practicing ministry to the poor, worshiping, and allowing the world to experience all of it up close. They chose to step into the flow of what God was doing. No matter what congregation we are a part of, we can too.

Jack Radcliffe is a husband and father, pastor, ministry consultant, and coach with Youth Ministry Architects and the Center for Youth Ministry Training, both in Nashville, TN. He is also an adjunct professor at Martin Methodist College and a seminar presenter for ParenTeen (www.parenteen.com). He has an MDiv from Ashland Theological Seminary in Ohio and a DMin in Theology, Adolescent Development and Culture from Fuller Theological Seminary.