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Friday, September 14, 2007

The Human Crisis

The world around us is suffering and dying.  As we look at the various causes, we find that there is a new common link connecting the deadliest diseases infecting our world. It could arguably be called the biggest ‘pandemic’ the world currently faces. Billions are suffering from it.  It leaves the victim numb, hollow and severely disabled from the normal everyday functions of life.  Truth be known, most of us have symptoms of this disease.  It destroys us from the inside out and is the leading cause of AIDS, malaria, cancer, war, poverty, consumerism, separation, injustice and waste. It IS preventable but too many are letting it go undiagnosed for too long.  “What is it” you ask?  It is apathy - the indifference to life.

 

While some may argue that death is the biggest enemy of humanity, I can think of two reasons why this may not be the case.  First of all, we know from nature (especially in the plant world) that death often marks the beginning of new life, making death not an end but a new beginning.  It is a necessary part of the life cycle.  Secondly, the work of Christ on the cross was done to take the finality out of death. Death has lost its power to destroy us.  Though we still die physically, there is something more insidious than this  … the ongoing day to day squandering of our most precious gift – the gift of life. If we live life to the fullest, we reproduce, we build, we help, we commune, we cultivate ourselves and others, and we leave a legacy. We are being true to our nature when we live this kind of life.  If we miss these opportunities to live, we violate our very nature as people made in God’s image.   When that happens our selfishness can kill, harm, ruin and devastate people we don’t even know and all of this can be done in complete ignorance.

 

The devastation we see daily from wars, diseases, starvation and injustice is due to our inaction rather than just the action of an oppressor.  There is no one government, dictator or terrorist to blame. You don’t need to look any further than yourself.  You may have heard that the opposite of love is hate, but the complete opposite of love is indifference and numbness to your fellow being.

 

This crisis or pandemic we are currently experiencing needs to be identified in ourselves, our churches, our cities, our nations and our world.  We need to paint this picture for one another over and over again in many creative ways until we can wake up in the morning and know that we are no longer carriers of the disease (especially in North America).  We need to paint this picture for our family, our community and our world, because the most harmful component of this disease is that is makes us sleepy, unaware and numb.  The tension (as put by Alan Hirsch in his book “The Forgotten Ways” ) needs to be presented over and over until the ‘guerilla warfare leaders’ present themselves.  These will be the people who say “That’s enough!  We can no longer live this way. We need to take action right now!”  They will be the ones who lead us to Life abundant – the life for which we were created.  They will keep us uncomfortable and yet moving in a positive direction.  They will have discipline to see their cause as the number one cause of Christ (John 10:10).  Who are these people?  Who will lead us?

 

You may disagree with me at first, but I don’t believe they will be the popular leaders of our day - the wealthy, the politically astute, or the influential.  They will be … the poors.  

 The poors will be the ‘guerilla leaders’ and the restorers of justice, leading us to the way of true worship and compassion.  ‘Poors’ include the weak, the disenfranchised, the oppressed, the abused, the imprisoned, (the true Hebrew biblical definition of the word).  Isaiah 61 is evidence of this plan (in case you think my ideas are WAY out there).  In Luke chapter four Jesus is given one chance to bring a message to the Jews of His day and the one He brings and says he has fulfilled is the amazing truth of Isaiah 61.  In Himself he reveals God’s heart and mission to the world.  He gives an anointing to the cause of bringing justice, freedom, good news and life to the poors.  They in turn will be “oaks of righteousness” and restorers of the ‘devastation’.  In the same way a healthy garden brings forth food that nourishes all, these leaders will bring righteousness and celebration to creation and restore it to health.  As we see the work and intent of God in this, we must also see the leaders He is calling to this cause.  Seeing this compels me to submit a strategy of creating healthy environments

 

I think the analogy of a garden fits this discussion well.  A healthy garden is a rich environment requiring good soil, care, sun, and smart planning in order to bring out the best of what you have planted.  It’s all about cultivation.  When it comes to growing people, cultivating the right environment supersedes raising up good programs, services, leaders and buildings.   The proper environment will produce and reproduce all of these things.  The strategy of creating a healthy environment – one that cultivates lives – must be our highest priority.  How do we cultivate environments that will cultivate lives?  We do this by seeking the face of Christ, seeing the face of Christ and celebrating His face (by celebrate I mean to speak of, treasure and live in response to).

 

May I suggest 3-4 principles that can be helpful when we talk of “seek, see, and celebrate”: Build Relationships that are on mission for encouragement and feedback Listen and Highlight the Work of Christ at every moment in your day

Pay close attention to How people think rather than What people think

Respond by offering your compassionate presence and look for ways to cultivate others.

07:50 Posted in Church Life , Cultivate , Speaking into the Culture | Permalink | Comments (2) | Email this

Comments

When asked the question, "What's wrong with society?" GK Chesterton answered, "I am."

Great thoughts!

Posted by: Ron Easton | Friday, September 14, 2007

Hello Joe and Jon,
Enjoyed reading some of your writings this morning after stumbling upon your site by accident. (There are no accidents)

My name is Henri and yes I am a Tenthorey. I'm 49 and married to a wonderful Christian woman Linda Gail and live in Chattanooga, Tennessee. We have 5 grown children between us: Jason and Brandon here in Chattanooga; Sarah and Nicolas in Sacramento California, and Luke in Toronto Canada. Mother in law Helen (88) is the only one who still lives with us.

I have my dad Roland (84) and brother Andre (44, never married) both in Sacramento. Mom Ida passed in 1987. My parents, both from Switzerland met in Montreal Canada in 1951 then moved to California in 1955.

We are all very Swiss around here and went to the big Tenthorey family reunion in Dompierre/Vaud Switzerland last year. They came from all over. I grew up in California but finished High School in Zurich Switzerland and worked for Sulzer Escher-Wyss there from 1974-1979. Then moved back and worked for Aerojet in Sacramento building rockets for 27 years in the research and development department. Currently I work in Chattanooga for Sulzer Pumps as a Nuclear Repair Coordinator Project Engineer.

Dad has the Tenthorey family tree traced back 600 years and I'm sure you folks are one of the branches. We have this all in writing to show who went where. Next year there will be another reunion in Dompierre if you care to go.

This year for Swiss national holiday (Aug. 1st) here in Grutli-Laager Tennessee about 30 minutes from where we now live, there will be yodelers, accordion players and alp horn performers along with lots of food and fun. Dad and Brother are flying in for the event

Hope to here from you soon. Have a nice day and God Bless.
Your (probably) long lost cousin,

Henri Tenthorey
915 Shady Fork Rd.
Chattanooga, Tennessee 37421
USA
Tel: 423-883-2441

Posted by: Henri Tenthorey | Wednesday, April 30, 2008

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