Missions Blog @ Covenant UMC, Dothan

In the event of any disaster, such as tornadoes in the northern part of our state or hurricanes to come later this summer, Covenant will now be prepared. Dr. Trip Todd, pictured here, is Covenant’s new Disaster Response Coordinator. Trip wants to connect our church resources and people to the greatest needs after a disaster. Rev. Mike Hoppe wrote, “The recent tornadoes made us realize that we need a more strategic response to disasters, and Covenant will now be able to lead the way in responding.” Part of our new strategy will be to purchase a trailer through Faith Promise funds and stock it with tools so that we can quickly deploy a team from Covenant. We are excited to unveil our new trailer later this summer, and we will ask the church to help stock our new trailer with tools during Mission Blitz week in mid-August. Also, we want Covenant to serve as a leader in recovery efforts in our area by offering training to local churches and partnering with them in disaster response. We all know that hurricane season is coming soon, and we hope to be Christ’s hands and feet whenever and wherever we may be needed.

A recent article in The Economist reported on the 100^th birthday of IBM in June. Many companies have been around for an entire century, but the fact that IBM has endured in a fast-paced tech industry is remarkable. Like mushrooms, other tech companies often sprout-up quickly one day and disappear the next. I was intrigued to discover how this company managed sustainability in a rapidly changing world.

 IBM was not always known for computers. In fact, the company began making punch cards for the U.S. census in the late 1800’s.  Over time technology shifts required the company to make changes, or die. In the 1940’s magnetic tape was invented for storing data. Some newer executives wanted to integrate this new technology, but many older executives resisted.  One older executive complained, “You young folks remember, IBM was built on punch cards, and our foundation will always be punch cards.” If this older executive had won the argument, most of us would never have heard of IBM today.

 What made IBM different was that it built its company around an idea rather than a specific technology. The big idea was that IBM would provide technology solutions for businesses in contrast to clinging to any one specific technology, such as punch cards. As technology bypassed magnetic tape, then mainframes, then PC’s, then ‘clouds’ or other new technology, IBM utilized that latest technology. Its guiding principle was an idea that was bigger than the trends of the moment.

 The Church can learn from IBM’s sustainability in a rapidly changing world. We must take seriously our church’s history, just as Isaiah said, “Look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were hewn.” Unfortunately, when many churches look to their past, they determine that their most important features are specific trends of their time. The church’s foundation was not built on a specific style of music, order of worship, committee structure, or architecture. Churches that cling to these things may be here today and gone tomorrow. What is most important is that the Church cling to a bigger idea. That big idea is that Jesus Christ is Good News for all nations. Churches that cling to this mission will always need to change with the times in order to sustain this mission, and in a rapidly changing world, the Church needs to withstand changes more than ever. The mission of God is bigger than the tools and trends we use to accomplish His mission. Churches that understand this concept might just be around 100 years from now.

I received this following email today. Our Home Improvement Ministry (HIM) helped a client of the Abuse Shelter.  I am proud of the serving attitude of so many of our Covenant in recent months!   -Mike Hoppe

Mike,

My client came in to visit me last week and expressed such gratitude for the work that your ministry team did at her house. She raved about their generosity, their skills, and mostly their attitudes of service.  She could not comment enough about the fact that every time she thanked them they would reply “it is our pleasure, we love doing this type of stuff for people.”  She became very emotional talking about how much that attitude meant to her and how she was so humbled by their kindness. 

I was so proud to see her so hopeful about not feeling so alone or overwhelmed.  Sometimes all it takes to change a person’s world is a simple of act of kindness.  The work those men did at her house was in no way simple, but the attitude in which they embraced her was.  I just want to say thank you.  I am grateful to have Covenant United Methodist Church as a resource for the families we serve.

Thank you and God Bless,

Pamela M. Miles, M.S.

Executive Director, Exchange Center for Child Abuse Prevention

This blog entry was posted by Dr. Tim Tennet, President of Asbury Theological Seminary. You can find it at www.timothytennet.com  I loved reading about God’s new work about the Wasi people.  -Mike

Redemptive History Unfolds…and CNN doesn’t note it!

I have always been intrigued by the disconnect between the redemptive and the ordinary perspective on time and events.  If you open the paper today you will find endless discussions about Weinergate (Anthony Weiner, that is), the 62 trillion dollar US deficit, the NFL lockout, musings about whether Sarah Palin will throw her hat in the ring, the excitement around Apple’s iCloud, and the list goes on.  However, most of this will be quickly forgotten and very little of it, if any, resonates with the great unfolding story of God’s redemption of the world – the missio dei.

Dr. Tennet

Today, for example, an amazing event is taking place in the middle of Tanzania among the Wasi people.  The gospel is being preached in the Chasi language for the first time.  My daughter is a part of a team of ten people who are serving in the middle of rural Tanzania.  They have spent most of the last year doing language learning and, after many months, finally had their first Christian worship service.   However, the sermons were always in English or Swahili because no one had the facility in the language to preach a full sermon in the Chasi language.  That important line has now been crossed.  I am particularly proud because our daughter Bethany was chosen to bring that first sermon in the Chasi language.  So, today, in the middle of rural Tanzania, in a village with no running water or electricity and, certainly no CNN reporters, something happened which won’t make the news.  It seems so “unimportant” in light of the latest Lindsay Lohan scandal or the public humiliation of Arnold Schwarzenegger.  But, from the perspective of redemptive history, something really amazing happened today.   It will be remembered even into eternity.  Today, on June 12, 2011 the gospel was publically announced among the Wasi for the first time.

How much of our lives, deeds, reading and reflection are really oriented towards the great redemptive events which are unfolding in the world?  I am praying that I might be more discerning and, by God’s grace, begin to notice the great redemptive events which are unfolding all around us – and they won’t be picked up on by CNN.

When Luke wrote the book of Acts in the 80s AD, the greatest missionary expansion was already over. By that time, the older generation of great missionaries we know from Scripture had finished their work. This next generation realized that Jesus had not returned as they anticipated, mass conversions started to fade, and the church was not spreading as it did in previous generations. As a result, people in churches were increasingly complacent towards mission and asking the question, “What now?”

 We often think that Acts is simply an account of mission history. However, Luke had a greater purpose than recording the origins of the Christian movement. He sought to inspire a new generation of believers to re-engage the mission that it no longer considered essential.   

 Luke strategically placed Jesus’ words, Acts 1:8, at the beginning of his account. Jesus said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” This one verse is the Table of Contents for God’s missional strategy in Acts.  The Spirit propelled a hesitant church outward into Jerusalem (Chapters 1-5), into Judea and Samaria (Chapters 6-8), and to the ends of the earth (9-28). Paul’s eventual arrival in Rome was not the end of the story of world mission. Rather, Rome was the next launching pad for future generations to witness to all nations.   

Luke hoped his audience got the point. God created the church as an outpost for mission on planet earth. Mission was the purpose of the church for all generations. Just as Luke hoped to inspire complacent Christians of his day to re-engage in witnessing to all nations, church leaders today have the very same challenge in addressing the question, “What now?”. Our churches have largely forgotten their purpose, but the Spirit still raises up leaders to inspire a complacent church to re-engage God’s unfinished task of mission.     

 Adapted from the dissertation, The Unfinished Mission: Evaluating the Impact of the Global Outreach Seminar in the Local Church (2011), by Mike Hoppe.

We will be hosting ERT (Early Response Training) on June 18, 9am-2pm.  Cost is $23 at the door, and proof of a background check will be required.  After completing the course, participants will receive a badge that permits them to enter natural disaster areas. Contact the church office at 793-4440 to register. 

If anyone is unable to attend the ERT training in Dothan, these other trainings are available in our area:

June 25, 2011  9 am to 2:30 pm
Lynn Haven UMC, 4501 Transmitter Road, Panama City, FL 32404
Cost: $25; includes materials
Trainer: Dr. Chris Perry

To register or for more information, contact Rev. Angel Diaz, 850-265-5231.  Please register by June 22.

 July 9, 2011  9 am to 2:30 pm
Marianna First UMC, 2901 Caledonia Street, Marianna, FL, 32446
Cost: $25; includes materials and lunch; due at training
Trainer: Amelia Fletcher

To register or for more information, contact Rev. Connie Farnell, ccfarnell@att.net or 850-485-4502.