Loving, Learning, and Leading

Are we response-able? I just read an article in the journal "Pediatrics" that documented the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (Chlamydia, Herpes, Gonorrhea, HPV, Trichimonas) in young women between the ages of 14 and 19. The study was a little small (about 600 girls studied), but its results are consistent with other epidemiologic information over the past 2 years. The study showed that 1 in 4 sexually active young women have a sexually transmitted infection. The study also showed that when looking at sexually active African-American young women, the rate of infection rises to nearly 44%. This study did not look at the lifetime incidence of infections, but only took a snapshot to ask "how many have current infections". The largest percentage of the infections was due to HPV. This study did not even include HIV or the surprisingly resilient Syphillis. Interestingly, of the young women who have had a single partner in life, the percentage was still n...

The Emporer's Clothes I have been reading Jonathan's Walton's fantastic social critique: "Watch this: the ethics and aesthetics of Black televangelists". The book is a socio-historical look at the rise of the African American religious broadcasters. Its an interesting look at faith, tradition, and more importantly, the syncretic melding of American values over and above theological traditions. This book is worth reading because it helps to explain the ministry paradigms of some of the most famous African American televangelists, such as Bishop T.D. Jakes, Pastor Creflo Dollar, and Bishop Eddie Long. These leaders did not suddenly appear, but are the end of a long continuim of African American ministers who used media to proclaim their message. After reflection, I guess what makes me tremble is that these ministers wield incredible influence, not only on their followers, but upon the our concept of ministry health and ministry outcome. I am not trying to say ...

Tradegy and Comedy Nearly two weeks ago, my wife, son, and I went to see the movie "Precious" at the movie theatre. The movie is about an abused, morbidly obese African-American young women who endures incredible suffering in her life journey. The filming is purposely raw and the imagines are beyond imagination. The realism of the sadistic treatments along with the invisibility and powerlessness of poverty is overwhelming. What struck me most in this film was not the acting or the directing (although both were top-notch). What bothered me most was the response of the audience. Throughout the movie, you are exposed to some of the most disturbing portraits of abuse. There is abusive language, abusive physical violence, sexual violence, psychological violence, and even the abusive use of food (force feeding alternating with deprivation). The purpose of this collage of violence was to give you a true sense of the abuse that the main character (Precious) had experienced. Mo...

Lessons for Youth A long time ago, the city of Jerusalem was under Siege by an enemy and the conditions within the city became so great that the following scene is described: 2 Kings 6:28-29 Then he asked her, "What's the matter?" She answered, "This woman said to me, 'Give up your son so we may eat him today, and tomorrow we'll eat my son.' So we cooked my son and ate him. The next day I said to her, 'Give up your son so we may eat him,' but she had hidden him." This is too horrific to truly contemplate. The idea of cannibalism is beyond our comprehension but it happens when people are truly starving to death. I share this story as I am overwhelmed with the violence, degradation, and nihilism that many of our youth share today. As I write this, many governmental agencies, faith communities, and community advocates are trying to develop strategies in the Rochester community to turn the tide on what has been on of the bloodiest years in re...

It all begins with Pain "The paradox indeed is that the beginning of healing is in the solidarity with the pain... the wanting to alleviate pain without sharing it is like wanting to save a child from a burning house without the risk of being hurt." Henri Nouwen, from his book Reaching out: Three movements of the Spiritual life. The core questions of life, ministry, mission, and even hope center around how we deal with pain: our pains, the pains of others, our culture's pain, even humanity's pain. How we deal, or in many instances, refuse to deal with these pains paints a picture of our vitality and what it truly means to live. I have shared many times with many people that God began to deal with me several years ago about this concept of wanting to extinguish pain without actually entering into to it. I had always grown up with the concept as a healthy understanding of healing and service. However, as I desire to follow the ultimate healer more closely, I ...

Learning at the YMCA This past week, the Traylor family joined the local YMCA in Penfield, NY. It happens to be one of the nicest looking YMCA's that I have ever seen. We began our "return to fitness" program yesterday, and God took the opportunity to teach me a few things that have been ruminating in my mind. 1. Perseverance in a discipline require momentum. Momentum is that feeling that we all experience when we are eagerly anticipating an activity and have a measure of confidence that we will actually successfully accomplish our goals. Momentum requires movement in the same direction (the scientific formula for momentum is mass x velocity, where velocity is movement in one direction). Paradoxically, the more we engage in a discipline, the more momentum we develop and the easier and more enjoyable it becomes. We often quit before momentum develops. Think about this with any discipline that you have desired to have, whether it be exercising, Bible reading, or pra...

The Politics of the Rich man and Lazarus Its been a while since I have blogged and I thought I would get things started again by looking at a common Biblical story that has some significant ramifications in how we see one another and the role of society in general: Luke 16:19- 19"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22"The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23In hell,[ c ] where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' 25"But Abraham replied, 'So...

Racism: Acting, thinking, or speaking of someone based upon a stereotyped perception of their race, ethnicity, or identity. Racialization: Practices that cause racial division and isolation that are often: 1. Embedded in the normal operations of institutions and social systems 2. Covert in nature (the purpose and the effect of the practice are not obvioius) 3. devoid of racial terminology or tones 4. Almost always invisible to a majority of people in a given culture. Although there is much in the news regarding racism, I find that very little is offered on the more pervasive, and may I suggest, more powerful effects of racializing practices. Racializing practices are things that "we" all do that are not intended to cause racial isolation or inequitable treatment, but none the less have that effect. These are things that are done by Blacks, Whites, Latino, and Asians all the time, but we do not take the time to look at t...

Keeping it real: Health Care Reform As a physician who had significant administrative experiences in the past, I got to see the ins and outs of healthcare and its funding. Its a complex topic with many different players and many different agendas. Within a single office visit there are multiple different interests secretly battling it out for attention, and for money. This is why the discussions that many of the political pundits are having regarding healthcare reform are more political agendas than authentic concerns for the health and wellbeing of a nation. The system is complex and interdependent so that each intervention has reverberations throughout the system. For instance, if you continue to limit reimbursements to health facilities and providers, as has been the case for government supported plans such as medicare and medicaid, the unintended consequence is inaccessibility to care for those who are the most dependent on care (Many practices that are primarily medicaid ...

I believe that the current discussion regarding the Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor is fascinating to watch and that the process itself has huge implication on how America see's itself and our openness to discuss race and race relations with a clear head. One of the statements made from Republican Senator O. Hatch, was that he was looking for Justices that are committed to enforce the law/constitution, not legislate it. He was reacting to her very public statements that most interpretations of constitutional law are in fact ways of legislating without the process. When we think about supreme court rulings (whether they be conservative or liberal leading), we must all understand that she speaks truth. Rowe vs Wade was not a "law" but an interpretation of the constitution that made abortion permissible. Placing the separation of all religious activity from public supported venues is also an interpretation of a constitution that originally was designed to deny a ...

Graceful Mourning Today, there will be a huge memorial service for Michael Jackson, which will probably been one of the most highly viewed, Tivo"d, and taped events of all time. As I sit here, there is around the clock coverage of his life, his performances, and the speculation regarding the many legal and social problems that he experienced. At the same time, as I complete football junkie, the life and death of quarterback Steve Mcnair has saturated sports networks and sports media. Steve is regarded as one of the paragons of integrity and commitment as the quarterback of both the Tennesee Titans and later for the Baltimore Ravens. He was considered the consummate family man with a stable marriage and the father of four. He was shot to death, along with his apparent lover, last week. His wife, family and friends are devasted by the loss of a father, husband, and even more important, their trust. It is simply overwhelming to put yourself in their shoes. I have read nu...

Things I think I think This is one of those blogs when I have a couple things on my mind that I want to say and get your opinion on. This is one of these times when you have some feelings and thoughts that are not completely concise and well articulated, but you still feel the need to express. So here are the things that I think I think: 1. Church people and church programs spend a lot of energy trying to be nice, as opposed to being loving. Niceness is polite, charming, and even kind. It provides harmony and the ability to work with one another. Love is a whole different animal. It is vulnerable, self-sacrificing, forgiving, forbearing, and even painful. Love exacts a price from us, and it is why we choose niceness over and against love. 2. People are looking for a community where they can be real. By real, I am suggesting an authenticity. Authenticity is the ability to express yourself in a way that is true to your true self and know that you are accepted. Not that you are perfect, b...

Asking and Receiving Today, I was speaking with a good friend about how God answers prayer. I believe that one of the major ways that God demonstrates his presence and power is through our prayers. The ancient wisdom of God's Word tells us to: "Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. " (Colossians 4:2) Its the watchful and thankful part that I think we mess up. I was reminded of this when I was traveling down the interstate in decent traffic and someone in the lane to my right put his left turn signal on. There was no room for this person to merge, but I slowed to give him space to merge left in front of me. Despite the fact that I gave him abundant space, he began talking on his cell phone and did not merge. After about 2 minutes, I returned to normal speed and he again put on his turn signal after about 5 more minutes. I repeated the cycle two more times before he actually merged, because he was so distracted. I believe that God often answers ou...

Restoration from the inside out Theologian Cornelius Platinga once described the Kingdom of God as simply "the way things are supposed to be". That simple definition reasonates with me as I read the paper, walk the streets, watch the news, or simply talk to my neighbors. So many times, I hear of senseless violence, grinding poverty, and debilitating hopelessness and my thought is "thats not the way things are supposed to be". That feeling is almost intuitive and it is shared by the most innocent children to our most seasoned elders. Its just not the way things are supposed to be... Lately, I have been spending time praying about how New Hope (the church I am privileged to pastor in Rochester, NY) can be a catalyst for "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done". If the kingdom is "the way things are supposed to be", what role can New Hope or any of us have in ushering in this new reality in the face of so much pain and suffering. The Kingdom or re...

Charity and Justice Yesterday, the leadership team of New Hope Free Methodist church was visited by Dr. Elaine Spaull. Dr. Spaull is the city councilperson for the eastern distric of the city of Rochester. Many of you who regularly read this blog know that I am not the one to embrace politicians as means to producing significant community and cultural change. Its not that politicians are corrupt or evil, but simply that many of them are inefficient vehicles of change. In light of what I just said, I was amazed as well as deeply moved and highly motivated after our visit with Dr. Spaull. Dr. Spaull has given up successful legal and academic careers in order to head the non-profit Center for Youth ( www.centerforyouth.net ) that is devoted to identifying and developing struggling and troubled young adults in the Rochester/Monroe County area. Last year, they helped over 22,000 young adults and gave shelter to over 1000 homeless teens. This is an agency that is making a difference i...

How Fatherlessness is killing basketball Today, I was listening to a report on the complexities of recruiting high school basketball players to college. It was mind boggling to even comprehend the maze the players, coaches, and families must negotiate in order for the player to receive a scholarship. The rules are complex and the access to some of the "elite" players is incredibly competitive. What amazes me most is the myriad of "handlers" who manage to have influence on these young men and women. These people are typically in the form of AAU coaches (I am not trying to say that all AAU coaches are exploitative or poor coaches, but that within the ranks of the AAU tradition, there exists an very unhealthy element) who guarantee their players that they will give the players exposure and connection to premium college coaches. If you have ever been to AAU tournaments, you can immediately spot these men (typically, they are men). They have a cell phone cont...

Theological Crisis and Culture Today I met with a local pastor for breakfast and over eggs and pancakes, we began to discuss the state of the city and in particular the health of churches within the African-American community. As I am new to this community, it was interesting comparing some of the dynamics of the African-American Christian community in Rochester with that of my home region, Cleveland OH. The particulars are not really important, but what was clear is that there is a crisis in many African-American communities that reveals itself in incredible, grinding poverty, irresponsible sexual activity, devastating undereducation, and a confused self-identity. This is true whether you are in Rochester or Cleveland, and it would be true for NYC, New Orleans, and Newark as well. The church is increasingly impotent in dealing with these problems. The problem is not a resource problem. The problem is a spiritual problem. Our theology (understanding of God) shapes our missiology...

Pastor or Friend? Several weeks ago, I attended a conference that was led by a couple who were Christian Psychologists and Pastors. The conference was fascinating as they talked about what it meant to be an emotionally healthy and spiritually vigorous congregation. They had a wonderfully holistic approach towards people that was refreshing and inspiring. One of the most difficult things that they taught was in regards to pastoral boundaries. They demonstrated that different relationships have different types of responsibilities and accountabilities. It makes perfect sense when you think about it. Husbands and wives obviously know and respond to one another differently than do friends or co-workers. A professional relationship has different boundaries than a personal relationship, etc, etc... The difficulty comes with the unique position of being a pastor. One of the statements that was made is that "Pastors must choose whether they are in a pastoral relationship (profe...

Once while I was Little This afternoon, I was driving home and the sky was a beautiful reddish hue with perfectly clear skies. I was reminiscing about being a child and loving to look at the sky and dream. What would I be when I grew up? What was God like? How can I make a difference? Why do we have to have winter? Everything was worth probing and the openness of the sky represented the vast opportunities that was ours in my youth. In the 1970's, there was a huge degree of turmoil and upheaval. America, particularly in my African-American context, held previously credible institutions in suspicion (think Vietnam, the civil rights movement and the rapid turning away from the church). Yet, in the face of incredible cynicism, there was this sense of hope and a faith that justice, equity, and wholeness would prevail. There was a childlike sense that the opportunities for greatness and fulfillment were just over the horizon and that fulfilment, in its many senses, was imminent...

Shrinking Faith One of the dominant sociological processes of the past 300 years has been the process of secularization. To many Christians who have belonged in the church for the past 20+ years, we confuse secularization with the concept of being "worldly". Worldliness is the theological quality of living according to a world view that is opposed, or antagonistic against the will and way of God. Secularization is somewhat different. It is the description of the way in which religion, in its multifaceted expressions, becomes less and less important to cultures, organizations, communities, and individuals. Secularization began in earnest during the time in which historians call the enlightenment, or the age of modernity. It is in that age that scientific inquiry became the dominant way in which we validated truth. Therefore, the worldview became more empirical and there was less room for the supernatura. Evidence of secularization can be seen in the diminishing importan...

The reality of American Christian practices In a recent study, the number of people who identify themselves as "unaffiliated" to any faith tradition rose to a total of 15%. This is double what it was just a decade ago. Keep in mind, that this does not count people who are marginally, or culturally part of a faith tradition, but do not practice or believe the tenets of that faith. To many people, including the President of the Southern Baptist Convention, R. Albert Mohler, this is a startling revelation (see the excellent newsweek article at: http://www.newsweek.com/id/192583 ) However, I am not at all surprised. I believe that this is because, I would approach this statistic in an different way. I do believe that process of secularization that began in the industrial revolution has continued (the process of understanding that you have sacred and secular aspects of your life, and that which is sacred is getting smaller and smaller). For example, 100 years ago, relationsh...

Viral Faith Yesterday, I blogged about "epidemic blessing", or the rapid outbreak of people being blessed. I believe sincerely that to follow Jesus is to join His mission. His mission was to seek and save the world. His entire presence was dedicated to fulfilling God's purpose to bless the world by helping it to realize its purpose. Again, its interesting that we, as Christians, rarely consider the degree in which we are a blessing to the families, neighborhoods, communities, cities, regions, and nations around us and around the world. Our spiritual scorecard often has points for individual moral goals, but lacks any reflection of the social and community responsibility that Jesus bore. Many Christians are saved, but few seem to serve... I believe that we have too many restrictive structures and paradigms that keep us from being an effective witness to the power, presence, and provisions of God almighty. We are often so busy keeping rules or developing church prog...

Epidemic Blessings Recently, I had the privilege of participating in the Free Methodist Urban Fellowship annual meeting, in my former church in Twinsburg, OH. It was one of those times when what God had prepared for me to share was affirmed by what God had other presenters share. It was as if there was the sensational sense that God was revealing his plan and approach towards blessing the Urban communities around the world. As I contemplated what I should share with the group, I was reading about some of the general public health issues globally. I thought of the devasting effects of recent epidemics and outbreaks around the world. As I thought about these things, I began to question what makes up an epidemic. An epidemic is defined as "The quality of affecting many people at the same time, spreading from person to person, in an area or sphere where the condition is not prevelant". It can be an infectious agent (viruses, bacteria, parasites), a behavior (teenage pregna...

Take My Order Today, I decided to go to a chinese restaurant that is just a few minutes from my home. I have always been a sucker for the small, hole-in-the-wall restaurants as you can often find a diamond in the rough. Today's experience in that restaurant was a brief but insightful experience. The entire experience goes like this: I walked into the restaurant The smell of fried rice and soy sauce filled the air Pictures of tantalizing dishes were featured on the walls and the overhead menu I waited 5 minutes, but no one was seen I left That's the real story. I kept looking for someone to appear and say "May I help you" and I knew what I wanted because of ample time looking at the pictures and the menu. There was no one seen in the back, the stove had been on, but was now empty. Multiple "Hellos" were not responded to. Just plain empty. How frustrating, because I was hungry and I knew what I wanted. God began to remind me of those who are hungry and...

Cultural Concerns of Manhood Sometimes, I forget that all of our perspectives are heaviliy influenced by culture, personal experience, and context. I know that this sound quite naive, but sometimes we all can not understand why others can not see things the same way that we see things. This past weekend, New Hope Free Methodist in Rochester, NY, hosted a men's breakfasat where 22 men gathered to encourage one another. The topic for the morning is "What qualities define authentic manhood". What ensued was a wonderful conversation where we analyzed the character of Jesus and applied his life and mission towards our very culturally influenced concept of masculinity. What struck me in this small, multi-cultural gathering was the ease in which some people easily responded to this question and contrastingly, how difficult it was for others to even understand the question. The question was meant to have the participants understand how their concept of masculinity deeply sha...

Simple, Small, and Subtle Free Methodist Bishop Matt Thomas described the ideal urban ministry as simple, small, and subtle at the Free Methodist Urban Fellowship conference this past week. He pointed out that this is in total oppostion to our approach to urban ministry where everything is big, complex, and loud. His words reasonated within my spirit this week. His extensive experiences with cities across the world revealed that the ministries that were simple in structure (did a few things well), small in size (a few people ministering to a few people), and subtle (begining relational and not programatically). These approaches have a radical, but not reckless approach towards ministering to those in city. Instead of going to a place and trying to raise funds for a church plant, the focus is on reaching people and developing communities around a relatively simple set of core processes. This is the message of books such as "Simple church" by Thom Ranier, or "Deliber...

The Coward Conspiracy Today, I read in the Rochester Democrat-Chronicle the front page story of the domestic homicide of a Ms. Rivera. Who had apparently warned her family of the threats and violence that she had been living with for over one year prior to her murder. Many advised her to be careful and probably encouraged her to end the relationship in light of his proclivity towards violence. Headlines like these are no longer strange or uncommon. The battering of pop singer Rihanna by teen icon Chris Brown made news, but barely two month later, they are regularly seen together. Celebrities such as Oprah have made public statements, urging Rihanna to leave this toxic, and potentially life threatening relationship. Jackson Katz, in his wonderfully provocative book "The Macho Paradox", asks why domestic violence in all of its ugly shades, is considered a "women's issue". Women are certainly the victims and their is also true that pathological co-dependent behavio...

Overcoming the Noise Last week, I participated in a spinning class at the local Bally's fitness center. For those of you who are not familiar with a spinning class, it is a room filled with stationary bikes, that is led by a slightly sadistic teacher who pushes you to different types of pedaling. The result is 45 minutes of pain, sweat, and swearing not to eat another cheeseburger! During the class, I noticed that the instructor was about 7 feet from me, but I had trouble listening to her instruction. If you have ever been to a class like this, you know that there is music blaring in the background and the sounds of the machines themselves. However, to compensate for this, she was wearing a state of the art microphone. Despite the crystal clear quality of her voice through the microphone, I found myself watching other riders because I was missing her instructions. As I thought about this, I began to realize that this was a lesson on our spiritual fitness. You see, some...

How would Jesus Drive? Today, I spent one hour and fifteen minutes driving my children to school this morning due to difficult winter weather in Rochester, NY. When you are sitting in traffic, you have time to think of a whole bunch of things, most which have no significance. I began to think about the WWJD slogan that was revitalized in the past decade. I was thinking about how would Jesus drive. As a human incarnation of the Godhead, He would, of course, drive perfectly. However, I was asking myself "what does perfect driving look like". Afterall, its not just limited to the right speeds, and obeying traffic laws, but the intent and motivations would also be in line with the purposes of God. So, I was thinking that perfect driving would also be related to the destination and the purposes of that destination. In other words, if God is love and Jesus is a incarnation of God, made flesh, driving would be a means to love. So if the destination itself was to do somet...

Implications of "24" I have been excited about the return of "24" to the weekly TV line up. My family and I became addicted to this intense show about 3 years ago when someone purchased the first season on DVD. I have been thinking about the character of Jack Bauer. He is an American Heroe. We watch him because he is a reflection of what we think we need. He, like all superheroes, are an extension of our sense of justice and manifestation of our ethos. When Jack begins to kill, maim, and torture, we justify his actions in the name of defending the safety of America. I watch, like millions of others, as he does "whatever he has to" to get at the evil villains who are seeking to destroy America. We rarely hear their story. The villains never have the privilege of being humanized. Some may say that this is a simple extension of the dehumanization that occurs with violence, but I think it is because it is more comforting to kill those without families...

Rethinking Male-Female Friendships Its been a little while since I have written. As many of you know, I am in the midst of a transition and now life has settled down enough for me to regularly share some thoughts and to gather your insights. I have been thinking a lot about male and female friendships. How do healthy non-romantic relationships between adult men and women develop and remain vibrant without either unhealthy boundaries, or aloofness. I know that many of those who read my blog are committed and mature people who have walked along the Christian journey for some time now, but I still think we struggle with defining and understanding healthy parameters for male and female relationships that are not romantic. There is a tendency to polarize. We either say that all relationships that are not romantic with the opposite sex must be avoided, or that you can have any relationship with anyone, along as you are not sexually intimate. I personally find that natural friendships ar...