wisdom needed
I hope I can articulate this, but I'm not sure if I adequately can.
I grew up in the Arkansas Assemblies of God, but since coming to SAGU my worldview and perspective on a whole lot of things have been broadened to say the least.
Especially in small town AG churches in Arkansas, there was/is a huge focus on the experiencing of the Holy Spirit (tongues, slain in Spirit, no message when the Spirit moves, ect). To qualify everything I will say, I'm not opposed to these things nor do I think they are necessarily unbiblical. Do people's emotions get carried away? Yes. Do people lose focus on reaching people instead of "seeking only the Holy Spirit"? Absolutely. I think people miss the point sometimes, but I don't want to dismiss God from any equation.
As I sat through a service like this yesterday in my home church, I honestly struggled with so many thoughts. In some ways, things can begin to look like PT Barnum's circus if people aren't careful, but deep down I believe God's Spirit is real and can move in unnatural ways in people's lives. Things will be done in ways that don't make complete sense when the supernatural is present.
I know God desires order in a worship service, but whose order? My practicality may not always be the best thing, cause truthfully God is not always a practical and rational God. He simply doesn't make sense sometimes. But if we are serving a supernatural, spiritual God, there has to be room for the supernatural and spiritual to take place. I think that's a fair statement. I just don't know how it's fleshed out exactly.
I want to be careful not to become cynical towards the moving of the Holy Spirit and allow my heart to become hard. I don't want to remove God's Spirit from my life. I want to be passionate about God and be full of his power. I believe in God's power to move on people in life-changing ways, but how is it supposed to happen? Is a small group best for this, or a personal experience, or even a larger setting? I don't want to box God up where in my mind He can only move in certain ways, because then I've reduced the power of his deity. I want to be sensitive to people... but I want to experience God.
On the drive back home yesterday, Lacey and I talked a lot about all of this. I don't know what to do. There's got to be a balance. There's got to be a way to welcome Pentecostalism into today's current worldview. Or maybe I'm just missing it completely. Maybe my home church has it right and my mind has just become conditioned and "cultured" to understand it now. Maybe not, but maybe.
With the thought of planting and leading a church at the forefront of my mind, it's all kinda scary. I need God's Spirit; I need God's power; and I need God's wisdom in knowing how to lead people closer to a supernatural God.
As I read back over this, I have a thought. The answers to my questions contradict part of what I'm saying. If Pentecostalism is best practiced under certain circumstances then I've reduced God. An enviroment and attitude of finding God needs to be cultivated.
So finding the supernatural in the current worldview is possible. It's possible in an enviroment in which the supernatural is expected, planned for, and fully embraced by believers as they worship God. I think...
I grew up in the Arkansas Assemblies of God, but since coming to SAGU my worldview and perspective on a whole lot of things have been broadened to say the least.
Especially in small town AG churches in Arkansas, there was/is a huge focus on the experiencing of the Holy Spirit (tongues, slain in Spirit, no message when the Spirit moves, ect). To qualify everything I will say, I'm not opposed to these things nor do I think they are necessarily unbiblical. Do people's emotions get carried away? Yes. Do people lose focus on reaching people instead of "seeking only the Holy Spirit"? Absolutely. I think people miss the point sometimes, but I don't want to dismiss God from any equation.
As I sat through a service like this yesterday in my home church, I honestly struggled with so many thoughts. In some ways, things can begin to look like PT Barnum's circus if people aren't careful, but deep down I believe God's Spirit is real and can move in unnatural ways in people's lives. Things will be done in ways that don't make complete sense when the supernatural is present.
I know God desires order in a worship service, but whose order? My practicality may not always be the best thing, cause truthfully God is not always a practical and rational God. He simply doesn't make sense sometimes. But if we are serving a supernatural, spiritual God, there has to be room for the supernatural and spiritual to take place. I think that's a fair statement. I just don't know how it's fleshed out exactly.
I want to be careful not to become cynical towards the moving of the Holy Spirit and allow my heart to become hard. I don't want to remove God's Spirit from my life. I want to be passionate about God and be full of his power. I believe in God's power to move on people in life-changing ways, but how is it supposed to happen? Is a small group best for this, or a personal experience, or even a larger setting? I don't want to box God up where in my mind He can only move in certain ways, because then I've reduced the power of his deity. I want to be sensitive to people... but I want to experience God.
On the drive back home yesterday, Lacey and I talked a lot about all of this. I don't know what to do. There's got to be a balance. There's got to be a way to welcome Pentecostalism into today's current worldview. Or maybe I'm just missing it completely. Maybe my home church has it right and my mind has just become conditioned and "cultured" to understand it now. Maybe not, but maybe.
With the thought of planting and leading a church at the forefront of my mind, it's all kinda scary. I need God's Spirit; I need God's power; and I need God's wisdom in knowing how to lead people closer to a supernatural God.
As I read back over this, I have a thought. The answers to my questions contradict part of what I'm saying. If Pentecostalism is best practiced under certain circumstances then I've reduced God. An enviroment and attitude of finding God needs to be cultivated.
So finding the supernatural in the current worldview is possible. It's possible in an enviroment in which the supernatural is expected, planned for, and fully embraced by believers as they worship God. I think...
posted by Seth Henderson at 2:22 PM
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