And now for some profanity...

Well, we're kicking off a new series at Element this week, called "Cussing In Church". I'm really stoked about it, for a number of reasons, and I'm really praying that God uses it to spark some deep thought in each one of us...And not just that we'd think about things deeply, but that we'd allow God to change things in our lives like only He can!

The genesis of the series came months ago, when I was talking with a friend about a book he was reading. It was written by a Christian, and it was about church, and about how we should go about doing things in the church...Things like how we should do youth ministry, and how we should communicate, and how we should pick topics for Sunday morning messages, and so on. He was mentioning to me that it seemed kind of odd, after he'd gotten through it, but that he couldn't quite put his finger on why the book didn't really resonate with him. As we talked through it, though, he had an epiphany. The book, it seemed, dealt with church topics as though real people weren't involved. As in, all you had to do was have the right idea, and the church would thrive. All you had to do was say the right things, and people's lives would change. The messiness of life, so to speak, was overlooked. Life's just not that simple, and because it's not, neither is the Church. We can't separate our real life problems from problems the Church faces. Yet the book seemed to deal with things as though the Christian life is a neat series of perfectly-resolved issues if we just have the right strategy.

The difficulty, though, is that having the right strategy is no guarantee of anything...In fact, putting our faith in methods and strategies is essentially saying to God, "Why don't you sit this one out? We'll take it from here. We do, after all, have a strategy from a Christian book." I probably don't need to tell you that this is basically a recipe for disaster - The more we put our faith in Christian institutions, people, and methods, the further we get from anything that actually has the power to change a life. And that's why this series...Life's not neat and clean. Period. But God can and does change messy lives, redeem disastrous choices, and love unlovable people. Shouldn't we present Him as such? Shouldn't we deal with the issues in life that really cause us the most heartache, pain, and confusion, and speak the incredible power of God into those? Shouldn't we take the taboo topics, the ones the church is hesitant to speak on, the "cusswords", so to speak, and be fearless in dealing them? After all, if God is who He says He is, then there's no greater power than Him, and therefore no reason to be tentative in dealing with life!

Take a messy topic like the S" word, Sex, or the "P" word, Politics, or the "M" word, Money. These find their way into sermons now and then, and I can just about guarantee how they're presented. Sex? Don't have it until you're married, and then have it. Now let's move on to more "spiritual" things. Politics? This church is officially not in the business of politics, until election season, when we're suddenly concerned for the future of our nation. But we can't really talk about it in church, so let's move on to more "spiritual" things. Money? Give ten percent to the church. Of your gross, not net income. Any more questions? Ok, let's move on to more "spiritual" things (until we're short of cash, then we'll schedule another ten percent talk). I realize this sounds awfully cynical, and there are certainly some churches, pastors, and communities who actually pitch in on these difficult things in authentic ways, but all too few, and particularly here in the South. But what are we afraid of? That people would know we struggle with these things? Newsflash: We all know; we just don't talk about it.

So let's talk about it, but let's not get stuck where we normally do. Let's use Romans 12:2 as a foundation: Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (NLT) Think God can't change the way you think? Think He can't redeem a lifetime of bad decision-making? Think He can't help you in your confusion? Think again! Let's tackle the tough stuff together...After all, didn't we discover that Easter's not just a great dramatic story to be dusted off once a year, but an incredible "setting people free" kind of thing in a way that only a God that passionately loves you can? So let's be free...After all, "if the Son sets you free, you are truly free." John 8:36 (NLT. Free to deal with life honestly. No holds barred. Together. Let's do this...