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25 June fake it 'till you make it...here at home, i belong to a relatively new church. it's only been around for a couple of years, and it's "unconventional" to say the least. i don't know what kinds if images that word conjures to mind for you, but the reality in terms of the third space, translates into a relaxed atmosphere, a lot of talking, a lot of coffee, and a lot of really great dialogue on some pretty important points of scripture, culture, and life in general....key word there being 'dialogue'.
anyway, this morning, dave and chris were talking about structure, which at first seems antithetical to what the third space looks like on the surface. they were talking about boards and elders and other things that need to be addressed in order for our church to really live out it's mission...in order for our seemingly unstructured expression of worship to remain in tact, and for it to be able to grow. despite the scary terms, i don't think that calling the core people of the church "a board" or "the elders" changes who they are, or the direction they see the third space going in. that's what i love about my church at home - it's authenticity. dave shared the slogan that he and chris had when starting up a church - something both of them had a vision for, but no idea how to do - "fake it 'till you make it"
how much of our own lives are lived the very same way? sometimes i find myself praying by rote, or doing things in my spiritual life because i 'feel like i should.' i used to feel pretty guilty about this; like a fake, and a bad christian...but i've come to look at it like exercise: it's work, and you can never really enjoy it until it becomes a routine, but there's a lot of mornings that you would rather do anything other than put on those running shoes - spiritual, or otherwise.
this line of thought fits nicely with a passage in anne lamott's book "Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith" that I am currently reading. the passage concerns David, the monologist and pastor of the Church of 80% Sincerity:
"'We in the Church of Eighty Percent Sincerity do not believe in miracles,' he said. 'But we do believe that have to stay alert, because good things happen. WHen God opens the door, you've got to put your foot in. Eighty percent sincerity is about as good as it's going to get. So is eighty percent compassion. Eighty percent cellabacy. So twenty percent of the time, you just get to be yourself.' [...] As he explains it, in the CHurch of 80% Sincerity, everyone has to come to understand that unconditional love is a reality, but with a shelf life of about 8 to 10 seconds. Instead of beating yourself up because you feel it only fleetingly, you should savour those moments when it appears. As David puts it, 'We might say to our beloved, 'Honey, I've been having these feelings of unconditional love for you for the last 8 to 10 seconds.' Or 'Darling, I'll love you until the very end of dinner.'"
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so what do you think...about any of it? is it authentic? is it "real CHrisianity"? do we know what that looks like? or, in accepting our 80% limitations; not striving for 100%; faking structure until it turns into something solid...are we letting ourselves down/off the hook?
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amazing grace...
||- Cas -||
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