An Open Letter

I enjoy blogging both here on Facebook and on LinkedIn. With 61 years under my (expanding) belt, I would hope I have something worth saying to the Church and specifically the Church in North America. 45 of those years have been as a born-again follower of Jesus Christ. When I write I fully realize that I am not the smartest, brightest, most articulate writer on social media. I am also fully aware that I have my shortcomings and yes, even sin in my life. So now that I have dealt with the "plank in my eye", allow me for just a few minutes to present this open letter to all my Christian friends and leaders. No names will be mentioned to protect the innocent. Notice that you can read that in 2 ways? Not to worry friends!

I come from a wide-ranging spiritual background that started Lutheran by birth. I became a follower of Jesus at the age of 16 at an Toronto Estonian Baptist youth retreat in 1971. Later on I pastored 2 churches within the United Apostolic Faith Church. Then we brought that church under the umbrella of an apostolic group called New Covenant Ministries International. My wife, three children and I then spent 2 years in Estonia as missionaries before returning to Canada. Today I am a chaplain at various places around southern Ontario. My wife and I are members of a Pentecostal church where I help run the Alpha program.

I have seen much, experienced much and heard way too much. Too much because time and again I have seen the frailty of those who call themselves Christians. They gossip, they truly are often hypocrites and they most certainly are not always "salt and light". And yet, God loves each and every one despite ourselves. He still desires us to be a witness and ambassador for Him on this earth as long as we walk on it. He is not expecting perfection but He is expecting something. His last words to us were, "Go make disciples...".

We are saved by grace but despite what some well-meaning preachers are teaching these days, that grace does not excuse us from ignoring His commands. I could not be a pastor today because I don't even recognize the Church anymore. Instead of us being salt and light and showing our faith by our works, we are increasingly becoming more and more like the world. On social media we have believers openly talking about their love of alcohol. It's like a bunch of teenagers who have just discovered booze and want everyone to know they can now get drunk like everyone else. Is this how we disciple the nations and how we are salt and light? I don't get it!

There are exceptions to this but then we can also get into the legalistic end of things which is not much better. Somehow I don't think this is too much of an issue in too many churches today.

I am in a unique place today as a Christian Chaplain. The majority of my day is spent with those who do not know Jesus as their personal saviour. All these people and their families and my work colleagues, know that I am a born-again Christian and guess what: they don't persecute me. They don't laugh at me, mock me or tell me to keep my beliefs to myself. They actually come to me with personal issues that they don't share with anyone else. I may pray for them but often it is simply a listening ear. Part of it is because I walk around with a shirt that says CHAPLAIN in big bold letters on my back but it is much more than that. I have first gained their trust by just being their friend. I have done that by laughing with them and crying with them. I have listened to their stories and about their lives and shown interest in them. Then maybe weeks, months and even years later, they come to me hoping God can help them or their family member with a difficult situation.

Being salt and light is not a part-time job as a Christian. If we think the world is impressed when we can drink as well as them or tell dirty jokes as well as them or cheat on our spouses as well as them, we are kidding ourselves. Remember though, God doesn't have a plan B and C in his desire to see all saved. We are his only option. Let's ask the Lord to help us be salt and light each and every day.

An Opportunity

I am helping to facilitate an Alpha Course at the church my wife and I belong to here in Canada. In the late 1990's while leading a church in Toronto, I ran our first Alpha Course with about 8 guests. In case you have never heard of Alpha, it is a 10 week course that meets once a week to listen to a talk by Nicky Gumbel from London, UK. This time around we have around 35 guests and most of them had seldom if ever been to a church service.

Alpha is an opportunity to learn about the Christian faith in a non-judgemental and safe place, surrounded by people with some of the same questions and maybe even doubts as the person sitting next to them. It begins by sitting down for dinner and then listening to the talk on a certain aspect of Christianity. Then the real fun begins. Guests sit in groups of up to 10 people over a coffee/tea and discuss what they had just heard. No opinion is too "dumb" or off-base and each comment is respected. The group leader keeps the conversation going but never preaches.

I speak of Alpha because as I look around me I see a world that quite frankly is in a mess. You have terrorists and crazy world leaders in the midst of dropping oil prices and in Canada, a free-falling dollar. It is a time of uncertainty and history tells us that it is a time when the church usually steps up to bring hope. As Christians we know that the One who brings hope is Jesus Christ. Based on the various ethnic and religious backgrounds of the Alpha attendees, my belief is that the Lord has the ear of more than a few people.

While we lived in Estonia in the early 2000's, we ran Alpha in Estonian. Then too we had non-believers join us as I did the talks while translating them directly from Nicky Gumbel's book. It was a challenge but God's word does not come back void.

The question I put out to each of you is a simple one: what opportunities is God showing you as individuals and as churches in this day? We had 6 people give their lives to Jesus at church this past Sunday. Hopefully they will be among the 35 guests as we start Alpha tomorrow evening. Without trying to insult anyone, there are religious groups right now that people are literally fleeing from but where are they running to? People are looking for hope and freedom and as Christians you have the privilege to direct them to the One who has given it to you.