Broadway Christian Church · Columbia, Missouri

The Worship of God · January 3, 2010

Litany of Praise and Invocation

From Psalm 147  

What have we received from the God of creation?

   Blessing, provision, and peace!

Nature is God’s theatre, the stage where the drama unfolds

   Like freezing and thawing,

   the Spirit continues to shape us.

Let us pray:

   Mold us, melt us, fill us, use us! Amen.

Pastoral Prayer

Jacob Thorne

God of glory, God of majesty; your splendor shines from a manger in Bethlehem, where the Light of the World is humbly born into the darkness of the human night. As we begin a new year, we pray that you will open our eyes to Christ’s presence in the shadows of our world. This year, help us to be a beginning of hope for those who despair, and the beginning of healing for those who hurt.

We praise you, O God, not only for what has been or for what is, but also for what is yet to be, for out of the turbulence and chaos of life, your kingdom is coming. Your kingdom is being shaped even at this very moment. 

How silently, how silently, O God, your wondrous gifts are given. This year, in the silence, help us to find times to be still and to worship you. Help us to find the time to reach out to others, to be more generous. Help us work for peace. Help us work for the hope that has been proclaimed from you. Remind us of the gifts of grace and love, offered through you, that are gifts to be shared with one another. 

When we fear what may come next, calm our hearts and our nerves. Grant us the courage to speak out and to act on what we believe. Give us the wisdom to know what we can and cannot change. Challenge us to love all of your creation, even more deeply than we have before. 

Be with us, our God and Savior, and hear us now as we say together the prayer that your Son taught us… 

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

New Testament Lesson

John 1:10-18

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’”) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

Message

It Was the Year 2020

Tim Carson

It is the year 2020, and members of Broadway Christian Church are meditating on the Scripture of the day from the first chapter of the Gospel of John: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God …” Through their study, they discovered that the gospel writer began his story with words that harkened back to the very beginning of the larger tradition: “In the beginning, God created …” These words from the book of Genesis set the whole tone for what was to follow, for the beginning point was the creative work of the Spirit, the continuing work of the Spirit. When he began his story, he knew that connotation would come front and center, and that when he spoke of the Logos – the divine wisdom and creating agency of God – everyone would know what he meant. God is at the center of the divine creativity and the cosmic Christ is the manifestation of it. Those who participate in this creative activity of God are co-creators with God. They participate with this creative life of God.

If there is anything that these Broadway Christian disciples get in 2020, it is that God was creating and is creating still through the grace-filled revelation of Christ. And as a part of this divine creativity, we are also actors and participants in the ongoing creative work of God in the world.

It isn’t hard for these disciples to believe, because they had witnessed it. Ten years ago, as the congregation arrived at 2010, they took stock of where they had been and what they had accomplished. It was sizable. In addition to expanded initiatives in spiritual formation, the building of a new sanctuary, a Christian Life Center, and other needed space, they had added a new worship service that represented a new act of creation for them. All of these accomplishments were to the glory of God and placed them in a new position for even more faithfulness and ministry. And then, as they visioned toward the next era of their life, new horizons appeared. Some were clear, like a beacon shining in the dark.  Others were foggier and less defined, more like a bell heard ringing through the fog on a dark night. But the Spirit was beckoning them toward the next chapter of their story, and they strode toward it prayerfully, hopefully, and courageously.

But that was ten years ago, way back in 2010. Since that time, the Broadway story has continued to unfold, and like the clarion call from John’s Gospel, the Spirit that created in the beginning kept on creating, the divine Logos and Wisdom of God unfolding into the future.

***

Since everything is related to everything else, it’s hard to know where to start the story. If you touch one aspect, it’s connected to two or three more, and those are connected to others yet. But let’s just say it began with the insistence that God was speaking and the congregation needed to listen. That insistence started shaping almost everything that happened next, and so every effort, every initiative, and every emphasis was bathed in prayer. This was prayer not of a few but of the many. And it stretched into a greater emphasis on spiritual formation for the whole church family – from the youngest child to the oldest adult.  Their spiritual discernment led them toward a strong commitment to multi-generational formation, understanding that the church doesn’t just have a curriculum, but that it is the curriculum. It takes a spiritual village to raise a faithful child, but it takes children to make the spiritual village whole.

This emphasis on intentional faith formation and growth reached in many directions. It showed itself in the growing participation of adults in small groups that met in homes midweek and classes for faith formation that met on Sunday mornings, Sunday nights, and Wednesday nights. The faith formation of children had become increasingly holistic as the congregation realized that abiding and enduring faith would not be formed apart from worship and the life of the whole congregation.

This spiritual formation extended even to the mindful use of all of our church’s green space. Through the foresight of charter members over 60 years ago, the congregation acquired many acres that are now located in the western tier of the city. This green space became ever more transformed into locales of the Spirit so that, in addition to an outdoor worship center and a community garden, there was a labyrinth, a prayer path, and outdoor meeting shelter. People started coming not only to the indoor spaces of the church, but discovered the healing power of the outdoor spaces as well.

This passion for spiritual growth manifested itself in other ways as well. The Eight Keys of Discipleship grew beyond being merely a list of ideals and became, instead, a broadly adopted way of Christian life. When people referred to the Eight Keys, they intuitively understood that the Christian life was not only a set of beliefs, but by an array of practices that characterize the faith life and shape individuals and the entire church community. Maturity came through practicing the faith. Spiritual growth always manifests itself as compassionate, and so, ministries of Christian care-giving multiplied, and the thriving ministries of Stephen Ministers and pastoral care expanded in the whole plot.

As the spiritual hunger of the congregation grew, so did a desire for spiritual pilgrimages. Some people discovered the power of personal quiet days at a retreat center. Others found a way to retreat in community with other disciples. And others took pilgrimages that fostered spiritual growth such as a Disciples heritage tour to Cane Ridge, Kentucky. Others went to discover the Celtic roots of our movement in Scotland and Ireland. Some went on journeys to discover the Journeys of Paul in the Greek Isles, and a pilgrimage to Israel and the Holy Land. The desire to become a generative center of the Spirit had become so strong that some had even explored the possibility of establishing an interfaith spiritual retreat center right in the middle of Columbia.

This deep commitment to spiritual growth was naturally reflected in the worship life of the congregation, and all of the worship services became increasingly deep, beautiful, relevant, inclusive, and participatory. From the way the sacred spaces were adorned to the careful preparation and presentation of music and the arts, the life of worship thrived and grew, and people flocked to become a part of the celebration of the mystery of God. Musical groups multiplied, technology appropriate to each worship style flourished. Several years ago, the church went “live” with streaming video of its services broadcasted to a virtual congregation online. By 2020, the off-site satellite campus was outgrowing its space, and there was talk of planting another multi-site campus in another growing part of Columbia.

Though the congregation was becoming more and more known to the community because of its effective communication and the hosting of bridge events of music and inspiring speakers and seminars, the real attraction came as the result of the Broadway Spirit unbound. That is, members discovered the joy of sharing this beautiful place of faith with their unaffiliated friends and acquaintances. The vast majority of people who found Broadway Christian Church did so as the result of an invitation by some member in the church. They invited guests to worship, special events, Sunday school classes and small groups, youth groups, choirs, mission trips. The spirit of invitation became contagious and, like the Eight Keys, a way of life.

Because the church exists by mission in the same way that fire exists by flame, the outreaching mission of compassion, service, and justice grew larger and more substantial, as people practiced their faith through hands-on mission. This sense of a mission that starts at our doorsteps but reaches to earth’s farthest bounds took hold. Our building became Mission Central in Columbia. People became excited about reaching into our community with ministries of help, standing along other Disciples and Christians to rebuild after natural disasters, and being a part of mission teams serving alongside our overseas mission staff in Latin America and Africa.

The passion for mission outside the congregation became so important that Broadway became a leader in funding the mission of the larger church and went so far as to support a missionary in one of our places of shared mission. Coalitions of passionate people formed around justice issues informed by Christian conscience and advocated for a vision of Shalom and peace found in the Scriptures and carried in our rich Christian tradition.

One thing that has been amazing during these last ten years, since 2010, was the increasing growth of stewardship in the congregation. No more was the financial support being carried by a small group of highly-committed Christians. The joy of Christian giving had caught on as people discovered how important it was to a mature Christian faith and as they witnessed how their giving translated into dynamic ministry and mission. Considering the collective potential giving ability of our members, you could say that ten years ago, in 2010, we were stewardship under-achievers. But not so today in 2020. The budget has almost doubled in ten years and with it, the number of people who pledge and give proportionately, blessing as God has blessed them. The debt was retired five years ago, and back then, very forward-thinking people had begun to grow the Endowment Funds so that even stronger and more effective ministry could take place. Once the congregation agreed on the vision of “Every Christian a Steward,” money became the least of our problems. Giving follows vision, and Broadway has the vision.

Most of all, Broadway had carved out a distinctive identity in the city, and everyone knew it. It was an alternative Christian voice that was very attractive to those searching for a distinctively Christian community that was at the same time open to diversity and interfaith dialogue. The warmth of its fellowship was balanced by a global outlook of engagement and service. Its insistence on excellence in worship was balanced by the broad inclusion of children and youth and their dynamic participation in the body. If there was an issue of social import for the day, Broadway was involved. When people of the community thought of who had to be around the table, Broadway was the first to be called. During that time, the participation of ethnic minorities in the body grew so that the church came to resemble the beautiful diversity that God has offered to our world.

One of the things that popped the congregation over the tipping point into its next chapter of life was the role of spiritual mentoring. For children, it was significant adult mentors who accompanied them through the spiritual passages of life. Because the congregation had embraced a multi-generational understanding of life together, with children and youth fully included in the worship, fellowship, and service of the congregation, this became natural. When it came time to prepare children for baptism, elders and members of the community gladly stepped forward, because they understood their role to be a sacred responsibility.

Because spiritual leadership in the church must always be renewed and because the torch is ever passed on to the next generation, special effort was given to the preparation and equipping of new, younger leaders in the life of the congregation. Because the charter members have such deep devotion to the church and its future, they decided, as the tribal elders, that they would engage in a ministry of deep prayer for and mentoring of future leaders. Their efforts at supporting the next generation made leadership viable and real for the future. And in a real sense, the gifts they gave at the beginning of the story were completed by the loving preparation of those who would follow them.

***

In the beginning was the Word, the Logos, the creative Wisdom of God. And that Wisdom keeps creating and is creating now. The combination of that divine creativity and the responsive faith of the people of God somehow danced together toward a new and holy future. Because of that dancing and all of the things just mentioned, the spiritual critical mass of the congregation grew in such a way that the average attendance in worship grew from an average of 450 back in 2010 to over 800 today. Sunday School and mid-week small group and class attendance has doubled, as has participation in hands-on ministry and mission in the church. More Broadway members are carrying their faith commitments out into the community and putting them to work than ever before.

And so, the Broadway Spirit just keeps unfolding. Today, in 2020, Broadway Christian Church has become a regional church to which many people drive from some distance, a pace-setter for the larger Disciples of Christ, a banner carrier for other congregations seeking a way into the future, and most of all, a sign that the Logos that was in the beginning is ever-creating now, that though the decades pass and we pass as the flower of the field, the Word of the Lord endures forever.

This is Tim Carson, signing off from 2020. It’s good to be your pastor.

Benediction

Now, may the Word of God, the Logos, the Holy Wisdom of God, that created and is now creating, guard your steps as you walk into the future. Your God most surely is. Amen.