becoming

The shortest definition of Love:

You, not me.

(Taken from Intelligent Church, p.168)

早前讀過Change Agent一書，留意書背推介同作者的Intelligent Church，於是好奇之下，也買來讀了。

不想多談作者之前關於Penal Substitution 所引起軒然大波。但作者所觀察，關於今日教會的形象在非信徒中已出現極大問題，卻是相當的認同（是類似UnChristian一書的觀點）。例如作者留意，今日的非信徒可以清楚告訴你一堆接一堆，教會所反對的事情，但若問「教會所持守、所力爭的（uphold and fight for what?）是甚麼？」，相信教外（甚至教內）的人也不一定能答得上幾個。

另一個有趣的觀察：耶穌在世的工作中，是以愛來推展祂的工作，而不是一味靠「嚇」、靠大聲罵人、指出罪惡來叫人悔改。改變是重要的，但改變之先，更重要的是先知道自己被愛。

這是耶穌的使命，也是教會的任務。

叫世人為罪、為義、為審判，自己責備自己的是聖靈，不是我們（p.166）。

當然，耶穌不是沒有以嚴厲之話指出對頭的錯誤來，

但是誰面對耶穌這樣的「指點」？

是當時的宗教領袖，就是那些自以為已經是站在神那邊的人（p.97）。

你認為，今日的耶穌，會向誰，以嚴厲之聲來責備呢？

—

書的用語淺白，是寫給一般信徒，作者本身經驗和例子，與經文範例貫穿每段。每章若15頁左右，相當好讀，是屬於我認為的「枕前書」一類。

每章最後都有一個叫”Yes, But How?”的小段，用意是好的，但細讀之下，發覺內容與標題並不一定相關；所說的，我不覺得屬「怎樣」的指引，或者似某人的讀後感想多一點；這算是書中敗筆的地方。反而每段的問題思考，更加踏實和可行。

看這類書常帶來有一個疑問：若我不再其位，可能（怎樣）帶出書中的改革嗎？或者更吊詭的情況可能是：看書者，不在其位而不能；在其位者，能（或曰：自認不能）而不看。這書也未能好好回應這點。

當然，問一些「作者為何沒有說？」的問題是不公平的，所說的，已經相當不錯，沒有說的，就留待讀者（我們）繼續寫下去吧！

目錄：

1. Intelligent Church
2. Inclusive Church
3. Messy Church
4. Honest Church
5. Purposeful Church
6. Generous Church
7. Vulnerable Church
8. Political Church
9. Diverse Church
10. Dependent Church
11. Transforming Church

[Intelligent Church | 推介 | 試閱 ]

剛放下電話，再讀手上的書，遇上這段文字，和剛才電話筒對邊的心態，形成強烈的對比：

If our first understanding of God is more about his anger and judgement than about his love, mercy and generosity, it is not only natural but indeed inevitable that we come to outwork these values ourselves. If we believe that God doesn’t ‘take’ to those outside the church, we too, in turn, will begin to despise or patronize them. Each of us is made in the image of our god; our view of God’s character will reflect itself in our attitudes, behaviour, tone and body language. Behaviour is always the echo of belief. (Steve Chalke, Intelligent Church, p21)

越來越發覺，天上的爸爸每天藉各式各樣的信息，對我說話的時候，甚是幽默。

Change Agents
25 Hard-Learned Lessons in the Art of Getting Things Done
By: Steve Chalke

Book blurb:

Change Agents are pioneers, entrepreneurs, innovators. They can be difficult, annoying, and demanding, but their calling is demanding too: to take a vision and wrench it into reality.

When Steve Chalke was asked to be the senior minister of a dying inner-city church, he knew what he wanted: to make it into a Christian equivalent of a first-century synagogue. A place where community gathered, not just to pray and hear sermons, but to be educated, entertained, and find help.

In Change Agents, the author shares twenty-five lessons he learned during this work. He had to teach himself to respond, not react; say no more than yes, give up being everyone’s friend, and accept that any success was only a short respite between two crises.

Employing wry humour, persoanl examples, and a large helping of practical advice, Steve Chalke reminds us our enterprise, not our caution, with the Word of God is what’s rewarded.

And what are the 25 lessons about?

lesson 1 • others only ever see your mountaintop experiences
lesson 2 • respond, don’t react
lesson 3 • you can’t be everyone’s best mate
lesson 4 • every ‘yes’ implies at least one ‘no’
lesson 5 • people matter more than programmes
lesson 6 • action leads to insight more often than insight leads to action
lesson 7 • the journey with others is slower than the journey alone
lesson 8 • under promise, over deliver
lesson 9 • nothing is ever quite as good or as bad as it first seems
lesson 10 • vision and frustration are the same thing
lesson 11 • success is three days between two crises
lesson 12 • great leadership is measured by what’s left after you’re gone
lesson 13 • individualism is the enemy of individuality
lesson 14 • approach every problem with an open mind rather than an open mouth
lesson 15 • admiration works best from a distance
lesson 16 • trust evolves, it is never a simple ‘on’ or ‘off’ affair
lesson 17 • praise is the miracle tool
lesson 18 • keep the main thing, the main thing
lesson 19 • people follow people not disembodied principles
lesson 20 • inclusion never demands conformity
lesson 21 • nothing is so simple that it cannot be misunderstood
lesson 22 • followers expect easy answers, leaders know there are none
lesson 23 • no progress without process
lesson 24 • you can’t do what you can’t imagine
lesson 25 • if it ain’t broke, break it

[sample: chapter 1]
[Zondervan link]