I quit!

Well I quit my second job. I was the breakfast cook at Timber South for about 7 months.

I'm not entirely sure why I even took the job. I make pretty good loot at McMemamins, and I also work at least 45 hours a week there. It just seemed like a good idea at the time. My roommates have been shocked that I could work from 7am till 11pm between both jobs on Saturday and Sundays both, and one asked me yesterday what I would do with all my free time.

It's kinda scary because I was using work as an excuse for not finding a Church home where I fit in, and now I will need to come up with a new one.

Do they still show cartoons on Saturday morning?

Also a friend of mine came up with another movie idea.

It's called "Last Commie Standing".

It's a mockumentory of the stand up business in one of the former Soviet Republics. We are currently trying to come up with a plot.

The role of Elders in the Church.

I am in a weird place. Those who read this will know I am often in a weird place. It’s a place where my high intellect and massive amounts of emotion mix and I come up with odd questions and situations, and even more odd solutions.
Most of this is James’ fault, all of his talk about cultural relevancies, new Church movements and what not.

Let’s hypothetically say I am going to plant a church.

If what I deem to be a culturally relevant Church, (meaning group of believers, not a building) does not resemble what we have long practiced as a congregation in the CoC? More than just not in a Church building. More than deviating from our template of opening song, welcome, 2 songs, prayer and scripture, 2 songs, communion, song, sermon, stand as we sing, announcements. What about what the New Testament defines as Church leadership? What if I couldn’t find Elders or Deacons to work with?

The Biblical definition of Church leadership is quite defined. A man who has children who believe, married to one wife, and has a good reputation. One thing that is usually associated with Elders and Deacons are their age. Do you think that the principals that made a good father and an outstanding member of the community made a good Church leader? That they were a good husband, or they just had a wife? Or was it the fact that they had children? Or that there were no people that had bad things to say about them?

What I’m getting at is, I do not think that having children that are believers make a good leader. I do not think that having a wife that hasn’t divorced you make you a good leader. I do not think having a good reputation makes you a good leader. I do not think being old makes you a good leader. I do believe that having children who follow your beliefs show that you are a good mentor, and teacher. That you are married to one wife shows that you are devoted, and care about others. To have a good public reputation shows that you are honest and have integrity. And for the most part more experience makes you wiser. (Or is it more wise?)

There are plenty of people I know who do not meet the criteria found in books like Timothy, yet posses all of the qualities that would produce the things found there if their situation were different. Our society has changed in many different ways since the New Testament was written. It has changed drastically since the Restoration movement. There is no real push to be married. Much less pressure for reproducing. In our society there is much less public interaction to build public trust. People are living longer, and have a vast advantage in education over past generations, meaning they are wiser younger and can learn to mentor without having children.

I think that these characteristics are what are important. To lead someone else to salvation you should be a good mentor, you should be devoted to the well being of others, you should have integrity, and you should be wise about life in general. I think that our culture has changed to the point were the definitions of Church leaders are outdated.


Do you think that I have the authority to make calls like this? What do you think?