are we ready to be a movement

the idea of a " movement" disturbs me, not that i am 100% against it, but i would be less than honest if i did not say it disturbs me. now, before i go on let me say this is not a rant against "E"mergent of tony and what he is being called to do. tony has asked that we "take a break" for a while and see where things rest in a few years. i admire tony enough to honor that request. after all, he has the rather large task of trying to gather all our voices and see if we can be on a common track - a wide track.

i think, for me, the idea of becoming a movement is disturbing at a core level, because i have felt the sting, slap and insults of the "modern church movement." my concern comes from the idea that some heavy "formality" will form from what i believe should remain informal. as we discuss the possibility of morphing from conversation to movement i am concerned about some very important realities.

who will determine what the movement looks like?
who determined that one group speaks for all?
who will determine what the movement believes?
who will determine who will speak for who?
who will determine how the movement moves?
who will determine why the movement is?

i keep hearing that "many" want us to be more "organized." yet, i do not hear those voices. i hear the voices of those who fear this idea, and they fear it for many reasons. while some may see our voices as "trivial," i hope those who desire a "movement" do not. because if they do, then they are no better then the modern church we strive to move past. if they are unwilling to hear us, then they are no better then those they have questionsed in years past. they have replaced themselves with the likes of mohler and carson. if they are unwilling to bring all voices together, or unable to... [more]