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Why Do You Belong?

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Why Do You Belong?

by John Partridge

Written September 15, 2022 for the October Chimes Newsletter

NOTE: I wrote this last month for our church newsletter, got busy, and neglected to post it here until now. But, in a way, I’m glad I did because it reminded me to follow up. And I needed the reminder because although this was sent to everyone at Christ Church, I haven’t (yet) had a single reply. And I really do want to hear your answers. So go ahead and read what follows, but when you’re done, let me know WHY do you choose to attend church where you do?

I started thinking about my topic for this message and thought it would be a reminder to invite others to church, your neighbors, friends, co-workers, and other people that you might casually encounter during your day.  But as I thought about what that reminder might sound like, my train of thought went from “Invite your friends” to “What should we say?” to “Why do we like it here?”  And so, although my intent is still to encourage every person at Christ Church to be invitational, I realize that we don’t automatically know how to do that.  We freeze up when we try to think of something sparklingly witty to say, or even just when we desperately try to find something to say that doesn’t sound stupid or silly.

Toward that end, I thought I should start my asking you all to think, not about how you would invite someone else, but to think about why you choose to come here.  Some of you come here because you’ve been members for more years than I have been alive.  Others of you come because your parents and grandparents and other extended family all come here.  I get that.  On the surface.  But I also know that there is a deeper reason.  There have been times when people left Christ Church.  There were times that were hard, and that were sometimes… unpleasant. 

And yet you persisted.  Why?  What is it about Christ Church that attracted you here?  What is it that made you stay when others were leaving?  What is it about Christ Church that makes you choose to worship here rather than in churches that are closer to your homes, or might otherwise be more convenient?  Christ Church has a lot to offer, but I’m not going to share my ideas with you just yet.  I want you to think about your deeper reasons for being here because those are the reasons that you will want to have prepared when you have an opportunity to invite someone to visit here.

For this month, that’s it.  That’s my invitation to each one of you.  Don’t answer for your children, or for your parents, or for anyone else.  Just think about your answer.  Why are you here?  Why have you stayed here?  Why do you like it here?  What is it about Christ Church that gives you joy?  Don’t answer right away.  Think about for a day, or a week.  Then I want you to write it down.  I want you to write it down and put it somewhere that you can look at it from time to time, in the bathroom where you’ll see it while you brush your teeth or use it as a bookmark for the book you’re reading, but put it somewhere that you’ll see it, and by seeing it, you’ll begin to internalize it.  That way when the opportunity presents itself for you to invite someone, you will know why you want to come here and why you like it here.  That it.  There’s no need to overthink it and make it difficult.  When you invite people to church, the easiest thing to do is to tell them why you like it here.

And, after you’ve done that, if you feel like sharing, I’d love to fill this space in a month or two with a bunch of your answers.

Blessings,

Pastor John

That’s it. Please respond in the comments, or by email, snail mail, or hand me a note at church, but let me know what you think. Why do you go to church in the place you have chosen? Why are you here?  Why have you stayed here?  Why do you like it here?  What is it about Christ Church (or wherever you go) that gives you joy? 

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The 80-20 Rule

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The 80-20 Rule

Some years ago, when we were serving First United Methodist Church in Barnesville, Ohio, there was a Radio Shack store, inside of a pharmacy, just a block or so away from my office.  I didn’t shop there often, but for some projects it was handy to pick up needed supplies.  But suddenly, there were “Going Out of Business Sale” signs across the front of the store, along with a schedule of weekly discounts that began at 20 percent and ended around 70 or 80 percent when the store would close. 

I was a little sad that a store that I liked and found to be convenient, was going to close, even if I didn’t shop there as often as I might have liked.  But, in this case, I knew the owner.  And so, one day when I bumped into him, I asked him why he was closing the store and his answer was both sensible and simple.  He said that the Radio Shack part of the business consumed 80 percent of his time and effort but generated only 20 percent of his revenue.  Even worse, it occupied over 80 percent of the square footage of his store.  As a result, closing the Radio Shack and moving the pharmacy across the street to a smaller store, with lower rent, ended up saving him as much money as the Radio Shack franchise generated in income, while saving him 80 percent of his time and effort.

Of course, we aren’t running a pharmacy or a Radio Shack franchise, but there is a similar 80-20 rule that applies to churches and volunteer organizations everywhere.  That rule is that, in general, 80 percent of the work is done by 20 percent of the people.  Without doing the math, my feeling is that, at Christ Church, the percentage of our congregation that are “doing the work” is much higher than 20 percent, but our goal is always to do better.

This week our Staff Parish Relations Committee met to begin our Charge Conference paperwork, and our church committees have already begun discussing their budgets for next year as they also prepare for Charge Conference.  Soon, our Nominations and Leadership Development Committee will begin to meet, discuss, and nominate those who will lead and serve on the committees, missions, and ministries of Christ Church during 2023.  I hope that, even now, you will begin to think and pray about how you can be a part of what we are doing for the kingdom of God together.

Why?  Simply because we need you.  You have thoughts, ideas, skills, talents, knowledge, and abilities that no one else has.  Your suggestions, and your help, can and will take us places that we could not go without you.  If you aren’t one of those “20 percent” that are already doing six things, I hope that you will consider where you might “plug in” next year.  I hope, that as our nominating committee begins to meet, that you might consider saying “yes” to positions that they might ask you about, or be prepared to say “no, but” and suggest some other place that you feel is more suitable and better matches your skills.  I hope that you will not sit on the sidelines and wonder “Why doesn’t my church do that other thing?” when you might just be the first person to think about it, and your suggestion might just be the catalyst for launching something new that benefits our community or helps our church to grow.

Jesus didn’t call 20 percent of his disciples to do 80 percent of the work, and he doesn’t do that now either.  Jesus calls upon all of us are to do the work of the church and the work of God’s kingdom.  Certainly, he is not calling everyone to serve on a committee, but if not, I hope that you will think about, and pray about, where God might be calling you to serve.

Blessings,

Pastor John

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How to Find Our Livestream

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Christ Church after a winter snowfall

How to Find Our Livestream

I was told this week that some of our folk, on those days when they cannot attend in person, are still struggling to find our livestream on Sunday morning.  So, although I explained it to the person who asked, I will write it out here because I know, for many of us, it’s much easier to learn new things by following the directions a few times.

For some of you, this is going to be obvious, and if you are one of those folks feel free to move on to something else, but I hope that this will be helpful to those that need it.

First, turn on your computer or your smartphone, either will work, but after that the directions will be just a little bit different.

On a computer:

  1. Open whatever browser that you commonly use.  This is probably Google Chrome, Apple’s Safari, Microsoft Edge, or Firefox but it might be something a little less common.  Hopefully, you know which browser you use.
  2. Navigate to YouTube.com.  You may need to type that in the navigation bar at the top or you can type it into the “Search” bar.  Either way, click on that and go to YouTube.
  3. Once you are on the YouTube webpage, click on the search bar at the top and type “pastor John Partridge” or “John Partridge church.”  You can’t just type “John Partridge” even though that’s the official name of my channel because there is a well known actor by the same name and you will be inundated with his videos unless you include “pastor” or “church” in your search.
  4. After you’ve typed that, click on the magnifying glass, or hit “Enter.”
  5. That should bring up, within the first few options, a picture of me, and the name of my channel “John Partridge.”  Click on that.
  6. Once there, my instructions might be a little… fuzzier… because I never go online to look at my channel while we are livestreaming.  But, what I think happens, once we start the livestream at 10:15 am Sunday morning, is that at the top of my channel, you will see some notification that we are, at that moment streaming video. 
  7. Click on that notification and it should take you to the livestream that is in progress.

On a smartphone:

If you have not installed the YouTube app on your phone, then follow the directions for “On a computer” listed above. 

  1. Open the YouTube app.
  2. Click on the magnifying glass.
  3. Type “pastor john partridge” in the search bar as described above.
  4. Click on the circular photo of me where it says something like “98 subscribers, 256 videos.”
  5. That will take you to my channel and at that point the instructions are the same as for #6 above.

Another note:  If you haven’t done so already, subscribing to the “John Partridge” YouTube channel might make it easier for you to find it.  In addition, if you are watching on your smartphone, if you click on the “notification bell” and allow notifications, then YouTube will send you a message whenever our livestream is… live.

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Roe v. Wade and the Church

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Roe v. Wade and the Church

June 26, 2022*

By Pastor John Partridge

I watched an online clergy forum as pastors debated what they should say about this week’s Supreme Court decision overruling Roe v. Wade.  There were, of course, a myriad of opinions and I felt led to weigh in as well.  My opinion was to assume that half of your congregation is pleased with the decision and half of your congregation are disappointed, or mournful, or worse.  Among us today are those who have had abortions.  Among us are those who have struggled with infertility.  Among us are Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, and a whole spectrum of other things.  As a whole, and as a group, we are conflicted on this issue.

But, whatever your feelings, be sure that you register, and that you vote for those people who best represent your positions.

After that, regardless of all that, there are things that, as the church, that we should agree on, and that should unite us as the followers of Jesus Christ.  At Youth Annual Conference this week, the message to our young people emphasized our need to “show up” in ministry to the world.  This is also the emphasis of Jesus’ brother, the apostle James when he wrote James 2:14-16.

14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

Our mission is the thing that unites us as the followers of Jesus and regardless of our feelings in this issue, we recognize that this decision will make life more difficult for our neighbors.  We recognize that this is likely to make life harder for people who are already struggling.

And so, regardless of what happens in Washington, or in Columbus, we must not simply say “Go in peace, keep warm and well fed.”  We must not cast our vote in November and think that we have done our duty and do nothing else.  We must be a people of action.  We must be the people who “show up” for our neighbors.  We must be not just people of faith, but people whose faith is inseparably connected to deeds and actions.

We are the watchmen in the walls of our city.

We must watch over our neighbors.  We must, now more than ever, care for the poor, the hungry, single mothers, and young families.  We must act, both with our deeds and with our wallets, to make sure that no child goes to bed hungry, that no parent needs to choose between healthcare and feeding their children, or between feeding their children and eating themselves.  We must do what we canto make sure that counseling is available, affordable, or even free to those who struggle because of poverty, rape, incest, abuse, or any of a multitude of ways that this change in the law will ripple outward and make life harder for our neighbors.

Whether you think that this week’s Supreme Court decision was good or bad, the end result… for ALL of us, is that we must focus on our mission.  We must be the watchmen on the walls of our cities.  We must care for those around us.

Because if our faith is not inseparably connected to action… then our faith is dead.

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No Point in Waiting

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No Point in Waiting

June 01, 2022

By Pastor John Partridge

It occurred to me that many of us, myself included, have often used the pandemic and our current denominational stress as excuses to put off doing the important work of the church.  We decided that we didn’t want to invite people to church because, well, we weren’t having in-person church, or because we were only having parking lot church, or because we were afraid that they might not want to come because they’d heard about the division within our denomination.  But the problem with that kind of procrastination, is that it’s and excuse that never ends.

Every one of us has heard Harry Chapin’s 1974 hit song, “Cat’s in the Cradle.”  In it, the man telling the story always promises his son that he would find time for them to be together, but he never did.  And at the end of the song, the son is exactly the man that his father was, and repeatedly promises that one day they will find the time to be together.  But sadly, we all know that they never will.  We hear a similar tale in Robert Bloch’s story “That Hellbound Train.”

In it, a young hobo, Martin, makes a deal with the devil and exchanges a trip to hell for a watch that will allow him to stop time at the happiest moment of his life.  And at each of his happiest moments, his wedding day, the birth of his children, Martin debates whether he should use the watch and stop time or if an even happier moment is yet around the corner.  And, in the end, Martin never manages to use the devil’s watch before he dies.

Our reaction to our current crises seems to be the same.

We all thought Covid was going to go away in a few weeks, or months, and here we are, more than two years along that road, and still the end is not yet in sight.  We keep hearing promises that our denominational confusion will end at “the next General Conference,” but I remember that my pastor and mentor, Linda Somerville, had the same hope when elected as a delegate to the 2000 or 2004 General Conference.  Even now, even as churches are choosing to leave our denomination and form another, I simply do not believe that the end is anywhere in sight.

What I’m trying to say, is that there is no point in waiting to do the things that we know that we must do.  We know that our church must continue to do the work of Jesus Christ, we know that we must continue to reach out, to be agents of healing and hope, and to continue the mission that Jesus Christ has given to us in Alliance, in Ohio, and in the world.  We know that we must grow, we know that we must become an invitational church, we know that we need to reach out to our neighbors, coworkers, family, and friends.  We know that we must show them the love that Jesus has shared with us, and invite them to be a part of Christ Church, and a part of Christ’s eternal kingdom.

There’s never going to be a “perfect” time.  We don’t know when, or even if, this pandemic is going to end, or what the new normal will look like on the other side of it.  We have no idea when, or if, the division within our denomination will end, or if it will just transmogrify into some new kind of debate. 

There’s no point in waiting.

There is no benefit to procrastinating or kicking the can down the road.

The only thing that makes any sense, is for us, to do the things that God has called us to do…

            …today.

Blessings,

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Update on Methodist Denominational Struggles

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What’s going on with the UMC?

(Excerpt from May 8th, 2022 worship)

With May 1st marking the official “launch” of the conservative Global Methodist Church (GMC), we’re seeing all sorts of stories on national media and more circulating on social media. A few of them are accurate, but many leave their viewers and readers misinformed. Here is my assessment of where we currently stand as a local congregation (as of May 8th 2022).

Click here to watch this 4 minute video: https://youtu.be/b04zxb5_hSw

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Is Covid Over?

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Is COVID Over?

Our Easter Sunday worship service this year had a better attendance than in 2019.  This year’s official count was one hundred and three years ago it was ninety-three, and attendance at our Easter Vigil service was three more than the last time that we were able to have one.  Does that mean that our worries about Covid -19 are over, and our church is “back to normal”?

Well, no. 

At the very least, it’s too soon to tell.

Yes, we do seem to be past the worst of it.  And yes, many of our members and friends do seem to be finding their way back to in-person worship.  But I’m not ready to say that we’re completely out of the woods and our concerns about Covid-19 are behind us. 

While the war in Ukraine has pushed Covid out of the daily headlines, the pandemic, and the virus that caused it, is still causing trouble around the world.  Most recently, China has been dealing with multiple outbreaks in several places, locking down entire cities, shutting down businesses, closing ports, and creating more disruption to the supply chain which, in turn, causes problems for people, and businesses, around the world.  And China isn’t the only country that has had problems.  Several European countries have had surges in their case counts, health officials in the United States have seen spikes in several areas and are still warning that we might see additional problems in some places.  So, it may be too soon to throw away our supply of masks, although we can all hope that we won’t need them.

The good, even extraordinary, news is that things are getting back to some sort of normal.  Many, though not all, of our members and friends are returning, in-person, on Sunday mornings.  And, more importantly, although attendance hasn’t quite returned to where it was, it is getting better.  Moreover, using Easter attendance as a benchmark suggests that we’re doing pretty well.  Some churches have suffered significant declines during the pandemic that look as if they may be permanent, but indications are that we seem to have weathered the storm… so far. 

At this point, we have returned to doing most of the things that we were doing before.  Our committees are all meeting, we’re holding most of our activities, and we’re almost back to “normal.”  And the good news is that the necessities of the pandemic taught us some things, such as Zoom, that we continue to use to allow increased participation and save some of us from extra trips into Alliance.  But we aren’t yet where we want to be. 

“Almost” isn’t good enough.

While our Easter attendance is certainly encouraging, and our weekly attendance is getting better, we aren’t yet back to where we were.  And, honestly, where we were still isn’t where we want to be.  Some of our members still don’t feel safe going out in public, and that’s okay.  After worrying for more than two weeks while Patti was in the hospital last fall, I completely understand why being in a large group, like in church, might concern some folks.  And, knowing that the virus is still spiking in some places suggests that it could happen here, again, too.

So, what should we do?

First, have hope.  With the arrival of effective vaccines, things are much better, and, over the course of the last two years, our doctors and hospitals have become much at treating this illness, survival and recovery rates have increased, and promising new Covid-specific antiviral medicines seem close to approval.

Second, stay safe.  We understand that all of us are different.  Each person, and each situation, is different.  So, do what you need to do to stay safe, and to feel safe.  We will continue to offer online options for those of you who are unable to get here in person and we will welcome you back when you are ready.

Third, don’t stop being who you are.  Christ Church is an amazing and awesome place that is filled with amazing and awesome people.  We are known in our community for our outreach and love for our neighbors and that is an incredible reputation so don’t stop doing the things that we’ve always done.

And fourth, don’t stop inviting people to Christ Church.  What we have here is great, but people won’t, and can’t, know how wonderful it is unless someone like you points it out to them.  Every time it comes up in conversation, and sometime when it doesn’t, invite your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, hairdressers, barbers, classmates, and anyone else you encounter to visit us.  Carry invitation cards with you in your wallets and purses.  Don’t keep our church a secret.  Go out of your way to sing the praises of Christ Church everywhere you go.  And, since we now have such a strong online presence, and our livestream compares very favorably to other churches, inviting those people to check us out online is a good option.

Because our goal isn’t to get back to “normal.” 

Our goal is not to survive.

Our goal is to be better than ever.

And to grow the Kingdom of God.

Blessings,

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A Message for Easter Week

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A Message for Easter Week

For two years, I have begun this letter with the phrase, “This is an unusual time” and continued by encouraging everyone to endure, and to overcome the challenges that lay before us.  And, while this year is still far from ordinary or usual, it is at least a bit more ordinary than the last two.  This year we will be together in our sanctuary.  This year we will have lilies that we can smell and friends that we can see, and touch. 

If we have learned anything from two years of mask wearing, social distancing, overcrowded hospitals, case count watching, and involuntary separation from friends and family, it is the value of community.  While we did what we could to cling to what bits of human connection that we had through phone calls, video, and social media, none of those things could ever take the place of handshakes, hugs, and face-to-face, unmasked conversation.

In an odd, and completely unintentional way, this experience also helps us to better understand how much we miss the contact with our loved ones who have gone on to live with Jesus, or how much better it will be to see them again, face-to-face, and to physically feel a hug from Jesus.  Our experience with loss over the last two years can help us to see what we are missing and what joy we stand to gain when, and if, the day arrives for us to walk through the gates of heaven and be reunited with those whom we have lost.

But presently, let us prepare our hearts for this season of holy week and Easter and use that time to draw closer to God and to one another.  And this year, after a two-year absence, I encourage everyone to make plans to join us in the sanctuary and share the joy of resurrection along with the joy of once again being together.

No, the pandemic isn’t completely over, and no, we’re not completely out of the woods just yet.  But things are safer than they have been, and they are returning to normal.

I hope that you will make plans to be here as we celebrate Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, the Easter Vigil on Saturday, and our celebration Easter morning.  I hope that we will once again see one another face-to-face, shake hands, and even get a few hugs (can you tell that I missed those)?  And I hope that each of you will take this opportunity to invite your friends, your family, your neighbors, and everyone else, to be a part of that celebration with you.

Blessings,

Pastor John

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An Easter Challenge

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An Easter Challenge

by Pastor John Partridge

As I write this, Easter is less than three weeks away and by the time you read it, it will be closer to two weeks.  But as we grow nearer to our grand celebration of resurrection, I have a challenge for you.  But first, a few reminders.

Here in the northern hemisphere, Easter arrives in the Spring and so many of the signs and symbols of spring are also associated with Easter and resurrection.  Trees that seemed dead all winter, return to life as they bud and flower.  Spring flowers that disappeared over the winter, sprout anew and bloom even when they are sometimes covered with late season frost and snow.  Our songbirds begin to return from their sojourn in warmer climates to our south, build nests, lay eggs, and new life appears.  And after a winter of sheltering indoors and wrapping ourselves in layer after layer of winter clothing, we too feel reborn as we emerge from our cocoons of blankets, parkas, mittens, and gloves.

For these, and many other reasons, spring has been, for us, associated with resurrection and Easter.  But Easter is about more than that.  Easter is about Jesus conquering sin and death, not just for himself, but for us.  Jesus’ return from death to life was only the first resurrection and why Jesus is the “firstborn from among the dead.”  Jesus was the first, but his defeat of death, and our celebration of Easter, are symbols and reminders that everyone who has put their faith in him will also find resurrection.  We will all rise from the dead into an eternal life.

 But, as God’s rescued and resurrected people, our calling isn’t just to say “Thank you” at Easter and go on about our everyday lives.  As we have heard several times in recent weeks and months, our calling as rescued people is to busy ourselves rescuing others.  We are called to be agents of hope, reconciliation, and resurrection.  As such, the people around us should see resurrection in us in the way that we live our lives every day.

If Jesus has rescued us, and raised us from the dead, let us trust that he can also work toward “resurrecting” and bringing new life to our church.  We are witnesses to that possibility because in recent months we have brought in several new members.  But even though we have returned to our sanctuary, and even though our attendance is improving, we could, and we should, do better.  Because we are grateful for what Jesus has done for us, we should be at work sharing that gratitude, and the good news of Jesus Christ with others.   

  And so, here’s the challenge:  Even though there are only two weeks between now and Easter, I want to challenge every member, and every non-member who regularly attends Christ Church, to bring someone to church.  And when I say, “bring someone” to church I do not mean “invite someone to church.”  I mean that we should invite people, over, and over again, until we get at least one of them to commit to coming with us to Christ Church.  We all know that Christ Church is an awesome place to make friends, to worship, and to be in mission to the world but how will others know how great it is if no one invites, and brings them?

To be fair, it might take longer than two weeks, but Easter is a good goal because many people are open to an invitation at Easter and Christmas.  But the challenge remains.  Start talking to your friends, your neighbors, your coworkers, the cashier at the grocery store, the person who does your hair or your nails, it could be anyone.  Invite them to church.  Invite them to Easter.  And keep inviting them.  And don’t stop after Easter.  If all of us do this, if all of us become truly invitational, we should have visitors in our congregation every week and not just at Easter.  And, if we regularly have visitors, some of them will certainly decide to stay.

And that’s when we will witness resurrection power.

Blessings,

Pastor John

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Applied vs. Theoretical Christianity

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General George McClellan

Applied vs. Theoretical Christianity

In 1861 President Lincoln gave General George McClellan the responsibility of building and training the Union Army and he did so with excellence.  McClellan was a master of organization and so while he did an admirable job of building the Army and was popular with the troops, he was still removed from command less than a year later.  Why?  Because despite General McClellan’s skill as an organizer, he was described as “ineffective” when commanding the army on the battlefield.  Just as we see in science, where theoretical physics and applied physics are two entirely different fields of study, the theory of battle and the application of that theory can be, and often are, vastly different and require an entirely different mindset.

There is an old military adage that likely dates to a German Field Marshal in the early 1800’s that says, “No plan survives first contact with the enemy.”  And the reason that is true, is because theory and application are always different.  That means that an effective battlefield command must be able to adapt as conditions change, or as members of our Marine Corps often say, “Adapt and overcome.”

In the church, we encounter that same disconnect between theory and application.  Thinking, learning, and teaching about Christianity, are often quite different from the practical reality of living a Christian life or of putting “boots on the ground” and doing the things that we talk about on Sunday.  We see that difference in the hundreds of church growth books that are on the market.  It seems like every year someone else has a new book, with a new formula, that’s sure to grow your church ten percent in the first two months.  But those formulas are what worked for the author, and although there may be lessons that we can use, what worked in their church, in their city, at that time, has no guarantee of being effective in our church, in our city, at the time we decide to act.

But the second disconnect between theory and application is even bigger and it’s been a problem… well, forever.  Jesus called out the Pharisees for it when they criticized his disciples for not washing their hands.  Nowhere in the Law of Moses is handwashing required, only tradition required it.  But the Pharisees, although they knew the law better than anyone, gave gifts to the church but left their parents hungry.  They learned the law, they knew the law, the taught the law but they kept a tradition that broke the law.  There is, and always has been, a gap between knowing what to do, and doing it.

Our challenge, as the followers of Jesus Christ isn’t just to learn about Jesus, but to put “boots on the ground” and do the things that Jesus taught us to do.  It’s one thing to learn, and know, and even teach, about being generous, merciful, kind, forgiving, and loving, but doing those things is often another thing entirely.  We have not been called to be experts in theoretical Christianity, but to actively practice applied Christianity. Our calling isn’t to know things about Jesus, our calling is to be like Jesus.

Because knowing a lot of stuff about Jesus isn’t going to change hearts or grow our church.

But acting a lot like Jesus will.

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