Recovering Hope for Your Church

Moving Beyond Maintenance and Missional to Incarnational Engagement

Edward H Hammett

• Publisher: TCP Books
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9780827232297
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Church

"Why?" seems to be on the lips of many church, judicatory, and denominational leaders today. "Why has our church plateaued?" "Why are so few young leaders going into church-based ministries?" "Why are so few interested in church these days?" Recovering Hope uncovers the "whys, " creating space to embrace new realities, commit to the tough road of recovery, and develop new skills, structures, and ministry designs through a process of spiritual discernment, congregational coaching, and a deeper reliance on the work and ministry of the Holy Spirit. Eddie Hammett, a Professional Certified Coach and Church and Clergy Coach for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina, provides a step-by-step process of hope and health to encourage, guide, and inspire pastors, leaders, churches, regions, and denominations that recovery of hope is possible. A TCP Leadership Series title.

PART I

Finding Hope for Your Church

explores…

• When Infection/Lies Enter the Body

• Lies Many Churches Believe

• Uncovering Blind Spots and Lies Leaders Perpetuate

• Scope of Transitions Facing Churches

Different Members in One Body

“NOW FAITH IS CONFIDENCE IN WHAT WE HOPE FOR AND ASSURANCE ABOUT WHAT WE DO NOT SEE. THIS IS WHAT THE ANCIENTS WERE COMMENDED FOR.”
—Hebrews 11:1–2, NIV

Christ is like a single body with its many limbs and organs, which, many as they are, together make up one body; for in the one Spirit we were all brought into one body by baptism, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free; we were all given that one Spirit to drink.

A body is not a single organ, but many. Suppose the foot were to say, “Because i am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it belongs to the body none the less. Suppose the ear were to say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it still belongs to the body. If the body were all eye, how could it hear? If the body were all ear, how could it smell? But, in fact, God appointed each limb and organ to its own place in the body as he chose. If the whole were a single organ, there would not be a body at all; in fact, however, there are many different organs, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I do not need you,” or the head to the feet, “I do not need you.” Quite the contrary: those parts of the body which seem to be more frail than others are indispensable, and those parts of the body which we regard as less honourable are treated with special honour. The parts we are modest about are treated with special respect, whereas our respectable parts have no such need. But God has combined the various parts of the body, giving special honour to the humbler parts, so that there might be no division in the body, but that all its parts might feel the same concern for one another. If one part suffers, all suffer together; if one flourishes, all rejoice together.

Now you are Christ’s body, and each of you a limb or organ of it. Within our community God has appointed in the first place apostles, in the second place prophets, thirdly teachers; then miracle-workers, then those who have gifts of healing, or ability to help others or power to guide them, or the gift of tongues of various kinds. Are all apostles? All prophets? All teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues of ecstasy? Can all interpret them? The higher gifts are those you should prize.

But I can show you an even better way.

—1 Corinthians 12:12–31, REB

1

When Infection/Lies Enter the Body

THE IMPACT OF LIES ON THE CHURCH

“HOPE IS THE THING WITH FEATHERS, THAT PERCHES IN THE SOUL, AND SINGS THE TUNE WITHOUT THE WORDS, AND NEVER STOPS AT ALL…”
—Emily Dickinson, “Hope Is The Thing with Feathers”

No doubt the essence of hope is found in God. The roots of hope for the church are found in God. The challenge for many churches today is acknowledging and following God rather than traditions or personal preferences. An authentic church of God will always have hope. Is your church God’s church or is it structured and functioning around your desires and preferences rather than God’s? That is a key question this book will help you explore and resolve.

Hope is often found when reality is embraced. What happens when an infection enters and drains the energy from your local church, the body of Christ? How does such an infection impact the church? How can a church recover once the infection of untruths, limiting beliefs, and lies have entered the life and ministries of a church? God has used a personal health struggle to teach me about infection and how elements contrary to a healthy body rob the body of energy, influence, life, and health. God continues to teach me, and this book is an attempt to share some of my learnings with churches that find themselves losing life, influence, and health. So many churches are at best limping these days; weakness and dis-ease of members brings many churches to self-service, inward focus, weakness of influence, and being permeated by signs of fleeting life—decline in membership, finances, rundown buildings in need of repair, multiple programs void of member participation.

These questions have a personal meaning for me for various reasons. In January 2007, I had open-heart surgery to replace my heart valve that had been eaten and destroyed by a staph infection that, unbeknown to me, had entered my blood stream. I had been warned, ever since discovering I was born with a bad valve, that one day this valve would likely need to be replaced or repaired. Delaying such an invasive surgery seemed wise, since the valve was giving me little difficulty when it was discovered. Delaying such a life-threatening operation sounded good to me, but, even better, technology was advancing significantly, and the longer I waited the more likely I could benefit from cutting-edge discoveries and surgical procedures. However, I was warned that I should be careful even during dental procedures and other surgical-type procedures. Taking antibiotics before the procedures would greatly reduce the possibility of bacteria getting into that valve and creating trouble.

I lived for almost thirty years after diagnosis without any major challenges. Then, somewhere in my travels I encountered a staph infection, and it slowly but surely destroyed my heart valve to the point it could not be repaired and had to be replaced.

The valve had been destroyed by an infection that secretly entered my body and gradually weakened the heart muscle that brought me life, breath, and energy every minute of every day. As the heart valve decayed, I lost energy, became lightheaded, had a high fever and intense and consistent chills, lost appetite, and was so weak that a shower wiped me out for the day! My doctor treated me for flu-like symptoms to begin with, but we discovered after two rounds of antibiotics something else was going on. A battery of tests revealed I had a serious staph infection. The heart surgeon would not even talk with me until the infection had been destroyed. Surgery would have been high risk otherwise. So for six weeks I received two intravenous treatments of high-powered antibiotics per day. Wow, talk about pummeling a body! The antibiotics zapped me. What little energy I had, the meds took it! I was so weakened that I was in solitude, except for medical care, for about eight weeks. The solitude of that time became a real source of inner transformation. Life took on a very different perspective; mine was slipping away, and I knew it.

Permit me to highlight in an abbreviated way some issues I have lived through that I believe have something to say to the body of Christ infected by lies.

SIGNS OF POSSIBLE INFECTION IN THE BODY

1. Growing fatigue
2. Inability to focus
3. Feverish
4. Withdrawn
5. Resistant and unresponsive to standard treatments
6. Fluctuating vital signs
7. Lack of appetite
8. Inactivity
9. Inability to rest well

TYPICAL TREATMENT FOR ENHANCED INFECTIONS

1. Rest, rest, and more rest
2. Intravenous fluids and high-priced, powerful prescription cocktail of antibiotics
3. Skilled, consistent supervisory medical care and help with daily routine
4. Reflection and solitude
5. Maximized energy for must-do daily essential activities—basics
6. Monitoring vital signs daily
7. Periodic evaluation—blood work

I could write a book about each of these physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental challenges; but, suffice it to say, the body goes through a slow period of deterioration once infection enters—so slow that, sometimes, you barely notice it. Then one day the bottom falls out, and reality hits! Treatment releases the physical body, mind, and spirit to go through a methodical, slow, often anguishing time of recovery as direction, stamina, and focus are gradually restored. Such a journey cannot be done alone. It demands facing realities, practicing intentionality, focus, prayer, reflection, and seeking knowledgeable guidance.

I know a church, in fact, several churches, that have faced similar challenges. One UMC church struggled amidst a changing neighborhood and an aging membership, with no children and leaders with little resources to keep the church going. The pastor was serving three congregations, and she was so stressed with all the pastoral care needs that she had very little time or energy to lead the church forward. The apathy and deterioration o...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Editor’s Foreword
• Acknowledgments
• Preface: The Power of Why
• Part I: Finding Hope for Your Church
• Part II: Activating Hope in Your Church
• Part III: Living into Hope in Your Church
• Part IV: Sustaining Hope in Your Church
• Part V: Reflections on Reformation
• Notes
• About the Author