Dear Friends and Neighbors,
While you are enjoying a fantastic performance by the CUCC adult and youth choirs this coming Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent (a Sunday of joy!), I will be attending a conference in Las Vegas about entrepreneurship. I depart Thursday evening, and I will return to the office on Tuesday, December 17th. When I first attended this conference last year, I went with my nose high in the air. What, I thought, do I have to learn from ordinary people transformed by something called “the entrepreneurial spirit”? Surprise! I had a lot to learn!
The conference was focused mostly on financial education, and I was shocked by how much what we are taught about how to manage our money really only benefits corporations and big banks. Apart from learning some financial management facts and skills that apply well to both small businesses and churches, I was especially surprised by the central focus of the conference: identifying and working through fear.
Every evening, around 7,000 people would gather to hear one of the keynote speakers. Famous people would come on to the stage and talk about the role fear played in their personal and professional pursuits. No one downplayed fear: the fear of failing, losing lots of money, giving up a “W-2 life” to become one’s own boss and gain personal freedoms that would improve one’s health and quality of life. Speaker after speaker talked about confessing fear, and then stressed the importance of gaining the education (through mentorship and within a larger network of experienced people) and the training necessary to build confidence to plan through fear.
After the conference, I found myself wondering: why are entrepreneurs often better at being Christians than Christians themselves? I assume many of the attendees of the conference were people of faith—but the conference was not explicitly connected to any faith tradition. So, I ask you: as we faithfully wait for God to bring about the kin-dom of peace, hope, joy and love, what are we afraid of? How can we work through our fear and take bold action to draw near to what God is bringing our way? What education do we need? Are we willing to be possessed by the Spirit of the Messiah and invest in the hard work of Christian discipleship and building an enduring church, a church that will provide sanctuary in an increasingly hostile and warmer world? Who do we need to ask for help?
If you feel like you are not able to do this work, try something we did at the conference last year. Text three of your closest friends, and ask them to text you three positive qualities about yourself. They will respond, and you will be reminded: you are not alone. This work is not for you to do. It is for US to do together. And we can build each other up and grow together as we risk doing justice as a church family.
With you in Spirit and solidarity,
tony
While you are enjoying a fantastic performance by the CUCC adult and youth choirs this coming Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent (a Sunday of joy!), I will be attending a conference in Las Vegas about entrepreneurship. I depart Thursday evening, and I will return to the office on Tuesday, December 17th. When I first attended this conference last year, I went with my nose high in the air. What, I thought, do I have to learn from ordinary people transformed by something called “the entrepreneurial spirit”? Surprise! I had a lot to learn!
The conference was focused mostly on financial education, and I was shocked by how much what we are taught about how to manage our money really only benefits corporations and big banks. Apart from learning some financial management facts and skills that apply well to both small businesses and churches, I was especially surprised by the central focus of the conference: identifying and working through fear.
Every evening, around 7,000 people would gather to hear one of the keynote speakers. Famous people would come on to the stage and talk about the role fear played in their personal and professional pursuits. No one downplayed fear: the fear of failing, losing lots of money, giving up a “W-2 life” to become one’s own boss and gain personal freedoms that would improve one’s health and quality of life. Speaker after speaker talked about confessing fear, and then stressed the importance of gaining the education (through mentorship and within a larger network of experienced people) and the training necessary to build confidence to plan through fear.
After the conference, I found myself wondering: why are entrepreneurs often better at being Christians than Christians themselves? I assume many of the attendees of the conference were people of faith—but the conference was not explicitly connected to any faith tradition. So, I ask you: as we faithfully wait for God to bring about the kin-dom of peace, hope, joy and love, what are we afraid of? How can we work through our fear and take bold action to draw near to what God is bringing our way? What education do we need? Are we willing to be possessed by the Spirit of the Messiah and invest in the hard work of Christian discipleship and building an enduring church, a church that will provide sanctuary in an increasingly hostile and warmer world? Who do we need to ask for help?
If you feel like you are not able to do this work, try something we did at the conference last year. Text three of your closest friends, and ask them to text you three positive qualities about yourself. They will respond, and you will be reminded: you are not alone. This work is not for you to do. It is for US to do together. And we can build each other up and grow together as we risk doing justice as a church family.
With you in Spirit and solidarity,
tony
