Letter/Sandwich to FPC

Because our tour group visited some of the 7 Churches of The Revelation of John last week, I delved into the Biblical book of Revelation again to review those famed messages to the churches. I discovered that Jesus was ahead of his time in the personal feedback department.

Jesus – when sharing feedback via revelation through John – used the familiar sandwich model: Begin and end with positive feedback (the bread) but stuff it with critical substance (the peanut butter and jelly/ the chicken salad.) For example:

Bread: I know your deeds, your hard work, and your perseverance . . .
Sandwich Fixin’s: Yet . . . you have forsaken the love you had at first . . .
Bread: But you have this in your favor: you hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

The metaphor of an Oreo also works, except that the creamy center is usually our favorite part of the Oreo and this is not usually the case for a Sandwich Performance Review.

David C. Novak, CEO of Yum Brands (Pizza Hut, KFC, etc.), said in a recent  interview that his workers are “starving for feedback.”

FPC – as a congregation – does not seem “starved for feedback.” But isn’t the nature of spiritual development that we make changes to become more like Christ? If we are more interested in being cared for (casseroles) or merely eligible for sacraments/rites (baptism/marriage/funeral), then aren’t we missing the point of Christian spiritual growth? God tells us things about ourselves we need to know but don’t always want to know.

I – as your pastor – long for feedback that is substantive and ministry enhancing. It doesn’t help to hear “Nice sermon” because I don’t know what that means. I’ve heard that “management” is not my gift which on the one hand makes me think, “Good, because I am not called to be a manager” but on the other hand makes me wonder “What does better management look like for you (give me specifics) and what does that say about our vision for the church (because management that looks like “the pastor is a chaplain who serves us” might conflict with my theology.)

So, with the hope of lots of comments here, I’d like to offer a sandwich of sorts, in the model of John’s letters to the 7 Churches:

To the Church of Fairlington Presbyterian, you have endured enormous challenges over the past 63 years: divisions, disappointments, transience, and cultural shifts. You have displayed many examples of personal sacrifice for the sake of the gospel. Your love for each other is demonstrated in hospitality that overlooks individual differences. You’ve shown genuine love and concern for each other.

But you love institutions more than you love Jesus. (NB: This is my sin too.)

Institutions are important. Marriage. Denominations. Universities. Hospitals. Particular Church Structures. Clubs. They order human life and service.

But they are merely the instruments for serving God which is our basic life purpose. They are not God. We don’t worship the PCUSA or our particular church or a particular entity within our particular church. We don’t worship our jobs, our children, our spouses, or our favorite things/organizations/ideas. That would be idolatry.

We are really good at idolatry.

However, if we are faithful, even to the point of death, Christ will give us life.
Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.

Chances are that consuming that particular sandwich makes our stomachs hurt. It is digestable or not.

Whether we trust the one who delivered the sandwich is crucial. (Example: if I trust the person who gives me constructive feedback, it might hurt but I will readily accept it with thanks. If I don’t trust that person, then I won’t give it much creedence.) Am I still trusted? Are the elders and deacons trusted?

This question requires more than a blog conversation. But maybe the conversation could begin/continue this summer.

Where to Worship??

One of the unspoken joys of professional pastors is the treat of worshipping with other churches on “Sundays off.”  Some congregations write into their pastor’s Terms of Call that they are to take 4 Sundays away from their own church to worship with another congregation 4 times a year (and it’s not counted as part of their vacation/study leave time.)  There is one pastor in our Presbytery serving a mult-staff church who takes one Sunday each month to worship somewhere else for his own spiritual enrichment (and new ideas.)

I love to worship with other churches – and I’m using the traditional Sunday-everybody together in the sanctuary definition of worship here (rather than the Benedictine everything-we-do-is-worship definition, although that is also true.)

So far in this sabbatical, I’ve worshipped with Chevy Chase Presbyterian in Chevy Chase and in Montreat, NC, and at St. Paul’s Church in Antalya Turkey in terms of formal worship services. Sadly, much of my travel has been on Sundays so I haven’t been able to walk through the doors of a sanctuary, sit down with other people of faith, and sing, pray, and celebrate communion.

But today, on this Lord’s Day, Libby and I are heading up to St. Peter’s Church – a cave – in Antakya, Turkey. There is no formal worship, so to speak, but it is the site where Christans secretly worshipped shortly after that first Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection. I’ll report about the experience here (assuming the internet is working.)  As with so many worship experiences, I’ve found that something stirs in me as I stand in holy places, even if there is not a congregation around. Visiting Hagia Sophia in Istanbul last week was such a moment.  But I also miss worshipping with a  congregation.

I understand that priests can indeed be granted special permission to celebrate mass in the St. Peter’s Grotto, if they wish.  But we are expecting to have our own moments of worship – probably by ourselves this morning.

Is the glass half empty or half full?

Phil Tom, associate for the Small Church and Community Ministry Office of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), recently asked the question on his blog, “So what kind of mindset does your congregation and leaders operate out of – a spirit of scarcity or abundance?”

He asked this question as a spiritual version of the famous idiom referenced in the title of this post.  Usually the question is seen as a way to judge whether an individual is an optimistic individual or a more pessimistic individual (research also shows it can help gauge the right language to use in explaining a situation).  But, Phil meant it more generally than a single individual.  He means how we operate as a church, or as leaders of our church, and what our spirit is in making decisions.

Too often church congregations make decisions that are based on a pessimistic, scarcity frame.  Jan has preached on how the traditional model of placing importance on “Attendance, Building, and Cash” (an ABC church) has got to end.  Churches operating out of this frame are struggling and dying all across this country.  There is never enough of either A, B, or C.  We could always have a few more people in worship, or improve our physical space for kids, or have more money for ministry.  It leads to a pessimistic spirit – the glass is always half empty.  In its place she has hoped that we would move to a “Neighbors, Organizational Structure, and Paradigm Shift” focus (an NOP church).

Churches operating out of a NOP frame would see themselves as filled with the Holy Spirit (a church on fire, perhaps?), looking for ways to use what they have to bring others to Christ.  If we operated out of this frame, we would be less worried with the numbers of people attending service than with how those in attendance are finding Christ.  We would be less worried with the deficiencies of our physical space and instead with how to use the space we do have for supporting our common ministry.  And we would be less worried whether we had the money to do things and instead be searching for ideas that would be transformational or a paradigm shift for the community.  We would see the glass not only as half full but as was overflowing with the Holy Spirit and with our love of Christ.

As we think about the rest of the summer and as we prepare for Session-led Congregational Forums in early August on our building and grounds and on Christian education, I plan to reflect on the question posed by Phil this past week.  I will be asking whether we are practicing our faith with a spirit of abundance or scarcity, whether the glass is half full or empty, and whether we operate out of an ABC or NOP model.  And I ask that you consider it too.  What we choose to accomplish from our future shared ministry at Fairlington Presbyterian Church depends on it.

Jan Meets Up with Former FPC Member




Jan and Jon in Istanbul from Jan Edmiston on Vimeo.

In addition to an unintentional Righteous Brothers soundtrack, you’ll hear Jan Edmiston’s interview with a former FPC member whose story as part of our church is similar to many current members: Jon came to FPC as a young adult after college, he got married, and then Jon and his wife left the area after about two years of participation.

In our transient neighborhood, Jon and Sarah were two neighbors who passed through on their way to a more permanent home in the Midwest.

I share this because I sometimes assume that our church is unique in terms of what young adults/young families are searching for. But as you will hear, Jon’s interests and experiences parallel many of ours:

- he has an interest in connecting with other faiths
- he is concerned about his young children’s spiritual formation
- he is searching for community that sometimes begins in casual venues away from the church building.

As part of the Body of Christ, Jon clearly isn’t leaving all leadership in these interests to his church staff.

Enjoy this conversation. It was great to run into him in Istanbul while he was on a business trip.

Jan Leaves for Istanbul Today

Today we leave for Istanbul. Then Damascus. Then Amman.

I am enormously grateful to The Church’s One Foundation and to The Church’s One Foundation. Will be blogging at A Church for Starving Artists and here as able.