movements // events

You’ve heard me say it before and without a doubt you will hear me say it again because I firmly believe: “No one wants to be a part of a one time event, but everyone wants to be a part of a movement.”

Today I was reading a book by Max De Pree called “Leading Without Power” (and I’m convinced that leadership books are some my favorite), and Max had this to say about movements:

A movement is almost always a civil place, where people respect each other and work for a common good–where they understand that good manners, civil language, and decorum are assets. People respect the constructive mystery of simplicity, fidelity, clarity, and beauty. People are grateful for the contribution of others their lives and work–even if sometimes we don’t quite see how it happens.

Goodness. That’s what that is. Simplicity, fidelity, clarity and beauty. Max is a believer and writes from this perspective. And, these words make me think of the church….ahem…what the church should be. Too often though we make the simple complex, we cheat on what’s true, we confuse the world by saying one thing and living another and make the beautiful bride of Christ look more like white trash than the beauty that she is. I know, these are harsh words that might call forth some hate mail, but I’m just saying what I’ve seen from my perspective. What we should be. Simple in the message, Jesus Christ loves you and has given Himself for you (we’ll get to the complex once we wrap our minds around this, as if its easy to even wrap our minds around this). Faithful to the truth. Clear in our presentation of the beauty that is the Eternal incarnating Himself to tabernacle among us.

I’ve read so much over the past couple of days and the above paragraph is just some of what’s floating around inside…maybe I’ll be able to clarify some of it soon…