I heard a pastor say that he believed that 9/11 was a “historical shift.”  While I am not sure, as a historian, that I completely agreed with him, his point was well placed.  We are in a new time.  It’s a time that demands excellence in leadership and a willingness to replace past poor decisions.

            Jim Collins powerful book, Good to Great, postulates that for an organization to be great, a few things will be true.  For instance, great companies were “focused equally on what not to do and what to stop doing.”  So often in ministry and in life, we maintain “sacred cows” that have neither Biblical mandate nor effectiveness.  Collins found that great companies did not worry quite that much about what to start doing, but rather to eliminate the things that were of no use, time stealers, resource drains and the like.

            Another issue that this new time demands and that Collins discovered is that little effort is really needed for motivation or discovering new settings or dealing with change. “Under the right conditions, the problems of commitment, alignment, motivation and change largely melt away.”  So, if you are finding yourself constantly verbally attempting to motivate your “leadership” or attempting to create change, your organization needs a serious overhaul.  Rather than heading toward great, it is moving into mediocrity.

            A final point that Collins brings forward provides us with a great impetus for the future of the Body of Christ.  Our bookstores are filled with motivational works trying to demonstrate for ourselves how we have to be like the latest and greatest thing to come along.  Yet, we hear church leaders lamenting how they are not in a vibrant setting, thus it is impossible for them to succeed.  Collins attacks this notion with a wonderful quote:  “Greatness is not a function of circumstance.  Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice.”

            More recently than Collins’ book, George Barna’s company has once again put forth some powerful evidence about where the faith is and where we must move.  His latest efforts, UnChristian and Pagan Christianity, Point further at the points Collins made.  We are representing the greatest thing, person, activity, reason anyone could ever need to “be in business.”  Yet, often when you consider “churches” or “Christian ministries” there is a sense of defeat or a sense of merely trying to copy the world.

           Sure, our “business” is not sexy, not hip, not riding a wave of popularity.  Most of the good to great companies that Collins found were not in hip, exciting fields either.  That had nothing to do with them moving to greatness. 

            It is a matter of choice.  A choice to move beyond 200-500 years of traditions that provide little relevance in today’s world.  A choice to maintain 2000 year old traditions that are our marching orders.  We are certainly in a new age or maybe only transitioning into a new age, but our great need is clear.  We must be willing to make changes to move from a good organization towards a great one.  If we are unwilling, the downward spiral that has been well documented by Barna, McDowell and others will remain unchecked.

            At Numinous, we are determined to not merely follow the world’s description of greatness or success.  We are not about building a great organization, but rather growing great people, people who pursue a life of passion for Jesus.  It is time for a new revolution to emerge taking the faith back to the vision of the Founder.  We can do this by being true to His words and His vision.

Well, if you ever doubted that we had entered a strange new world a few years back, you don’t any more. In this monthly column, I usually try to take a look at popular culture with a Christian viewpoint, but my mind is, like everyone else’s, trapped by the images of collapsing towers.

We are in a swirl of emotions, images and thoughts as we attempt to regain some equilibrium about the tragedy that hit our nation in September. You are probably reading these words in November, a time when we might be thinking about the holidays. We will do that, of course, and maybe this Thanksgiving we will be truly thankful, but right now its late September, only 2 weeks since we were jolted into the reality of the war that has been raging around the world for a few years now.

Already many are getting apocalyptic (and maybe for good reason) with the image of a devilish face in the smoke, the various fake Nostradamus quotes, and thoughts of war. Billy Graham preaching the gospel to all nations at one time at the Friday memorial service the week of the attack is just one more shocking idea that hits the internet.

It is not all that amazing that the date of the attack is 9/11/01. 9-1-1 is our national call sign for an emergency. This is a 9-1-1 for America. But who will we call? Many are once again praying to God, but do they know who they are even talking to?

My prayer for the church in America is that we will finally shake off the slumber and rise up to be the disciples He said we should be. We must take the stage now as Salt and Light in what may be (at the very moment you are reading this) a world war of sorts. God has given us this moment to have people with a desire to hear. Are we ready to speak clearly, past the religious mumbo-jumbo, to a real story about a real person that you really have a real relationship with?

So, America, what will it be? Will we 9-1-1 our military forces? Will we 9-1-1 the President? Our allies? Will we, like Israel from centuries of old, turn to allies that once were our enemies? Or will we 9-1-1 the Eternal One, the Creator God, the God of our forefathers? Will we pray to God for His mercy and will we turn from our wicked ways? I’ve been calling my church to make these days ones of intense prayer, fasting, soul searching. Of course, do all you can for the victims and their families. Pray for wisdom for our leaders. But also, ask God to help you be the person who lives out a life that is worthy of the calling.

9-1-1, will it be a date that will live in infamy or will it be a date that, centuries from now, people will know that America returned to its God?

Let’s 9-1-1 the Father.

It doesn’t get any more real, at least not on TV, where 7 young adults live together with their every move shown to the world, a real life Truman Show. What is the big deal? Why are we fascinated with watching the real lives of these people? Are the real lives around us not weird enough, complicated enough, real enough for us?

Today we are inundated with “reality” TV with MTV leading the way. I remember when that station was all about music, but in various areas it has headed to reality world. The fame of its two TV reality shows, The Real World and Road Rules, have spawned a new generation of similar shows. From the crazy-popular Survivor, Big Brother, High School to the various cop shows and justice shows (Is Judge Judy really reality or is it staged?)

It is as if we are not able to enjoy our own lives and the reality they bring. In fact, the real issue is why do we feel this need for fame and finding it on TV. It is telling that the producers of The Real World feel as if the are providing today’s young adult generation with a chance at fame, at being a celebrity. And they might be right as the casting for MTV’s the Real World viewed over 35,000 tapes from 18-24 year olds hoping to hit the big time. One finalists admitted “Our generation thinks being on TV makes you successful.” Well, is she right? I thought that success was someone that you will never meet who spends time each week feeding the homeless or someone who cares for children each week in church. I thought that the thousands of missionaries around the world was the real picture of success. So who is right?

Is that what you want, or are you like others who think that even anonymous, we are valuable. I vote for the later knowing that inside all of us is a soul of immense worth, that each person matters. God said that He knit us together and that we are special. He tells us that he knows us by name and even has our hair numbered. He catches our tears in an individual bottle and He holds us in the palm of his hand. Now that is success. No amount of TV coverage makes any person better than another. Remember that the next time you wish to become famous—you are valuable just as you are. Never let the corporate world coerce you into sucking up in some effort to find value in supposed fame. The Divine One knows you are wonderful just as you are, the anonymous you.