Drew Boswell

a place for us to share ideas, talk about life, and learn together.

McDonalds, Customer Service, and the Church

The golden arches are a constant reminder of cheap food, cheap toys for the kids, a place to play, a bathroom stop when we travel, and has been a significant part of my life (more than I care to admit). There is no telling how many times I and my family have eaten there; so let’s just say I am a fan of Mickey-ds. However, Kimberly, the kids, and I went to our storage unit last Sunday afternoon to dig out some fall clothes and on our way back home we decided to stop by McDonalds for a “snack.” We walked into the restaurant where we were left to stand there for at least five to seven minutes. There were over a dozen people working, but all had their backs turned to us, and no one so much as looked at us. Some were within touching distance.  I consider myself a patient person, but after seven minutes going by without even so much as eye contact, I grew agitated. I began to feel as though I was being ignored and that my money was not even wanted. We passed the time asking the children what they wanted, asked them to pick out our seat, and even sent them to the bathroom to wash their hands, only to have them come back and find us still waiting, still no contact. And we were the only customers in line (or in the building).

When people don’t acknowledge your presence it goes directly to your feelings of worth. Am I and my family not worth so much as eye contact or a smile? It makes you feel invisible, as though people don’t really see you.

God says throughout the Scripture, “I see you.” When people are ignored they feel like they are considered to not exist, or that they are not valued, or even worth someone’s time to say “hello.” While God is a Spirit, and we can’t see Him, He speaks words that go to the very heart of our feelings of worth. Even when we go astray, he wants us to know that He see us. It is not a condemning look, but a look of concern and compassion. He wants us to know that we are worth His coming after us. [1]

Genesis 3:8-11 “And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” 11 He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”

Exodus 2:23 “During those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God saw the people of Israel—and God knew.”

Jonah 4:10 “When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.”

And, ultimately, God saw our sinful condition of being separated from Him, He therefore did what was required to bring us back into a right relationship with Him.  John 3:16 “For God so loved the world,that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

God is always watching us, desiring to speak with us, and spend time with us. So, as His disciples, the most powerful tools you have to change the world are/is your time, your words, looking people in the eye, and a smile. Throwing money at people will not make them feel the love of Christ, but spending time with them, talking with them, acknowledging their presence goes a long way.

If someone would have said, “Hello, welcome to McDonalds, we are really busy right now, someone will be right with you” while they were smiling, I would wait all day (ok, significantly longer). I’m fine with waiting, I know in life things happen that are unexpected or need to rectified before things can be moved forward. But just don’t ignore me. Let me encourage you today to make a special effort to recognize, speak to, smile at, and even give an appropriate touch to everyone you can.

__________________________________________

In a place of business there is an expectation of being welcomed, even honored, taken care of, etc., but what about at church? What do people expect regarding “customer service” when they visit a church. Sadly, I believe the expectation is very low, but it would seem to me that since we know how God treats us, we as His image bearers would seek to reflect this same type if love and attention to others. With all that God has done to get our attention, seeking after us, and making us feel “special” should we not reflect this same level of love to others outside our congregations? But the best part, is that our most powerful way of doing this is free! It costs nothing to speak to someone, shake their hand, ask them how they are doing, telling them that you are glad they are there, or spending time with them.

I have been to too many churches where my presence there was like the McDonalds example given above. You walk in and no speaks to you, or even looks at you, when you sit down and no one seems to care that you are even there. This should not be, because this is not how God treats us. We were once strangers but now we are His children. Matthew 25:34-36 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ “

[1] see Psalm 139

The Baptist Hymnal

Joshua and Caleb sang two songs at the World Missions Conference at First Baptist Church Valdosta GA last night. They did a great job, and the theme for the evening seemed to be, “to make Him known, and to make Him famous.” Once they had finished their songs they sat down with me and right about the time they reached my pew the director of worship was directing the congregation to turn to a certain page in the hymnals. I reached for the hymnal and began looking for the page when Caleb looks up at me and asks, “dad, what is this?”

I explained that it was a hymnal, a book with songs written in it. It is a way for everyone to know the music and the words for particular songs. By this time we had begun to sing, and I showed him how to follow along by sliding my finger over the words and lines. Caleb caught on quickly, and it was at this point that I laughed to myself. I realized that even though my children have been in church their whole lives, that the boys at the age of nine, had never used a hymnal.

There are churches all over the nation that have been planted and use projectors and media instead of a hymnal, and because of this there will be a generation that will never know what a hymnal is nor how it was used. I am not commentating on the value of one over the other, but I am glad that my children will be able to experience both. There should however be some way of showing children how church has “been done” over the centuries so that a respect for history can be appreciated. My generation seems to disdain things like organs, hymnals, “dressing up”, but what they put in it’s place is not necessarily new, only new adaptions of older ways of doing things.[1] It is amazing to me how the church goes from one way of doing things to another, thinking they are “cutting edge.” Let me give you an example.

The churches in Europe hundreds of years ago desired to teach the Scriptures to the masses of people who would come to their services. The problem was that most people were unable to read. So in order to teach them the stories of the Bible they had glass cut depicting images of the gospel, or they had statues placed throughout the worship area depicting various personalities of the Bible. The pinnacle of these depictions was Jesus on the cross. The problem was that eventually these statues became idols where people would pray to specific “saints,” and the method of teaching became corrupted. So protestants correctly did away with the statues, and Jesus on the cross in its houses of worship. The hymnal is a very useful tool for a congregation to follow a specific song, and still be “on the same page.”

But there are many (of my generation) who feel that it had become limited in the repertoire of songs and to sing songs outside of the hymnal were discouraged. So they got rid of it all together. But to not appreciate the songs that are in it, is just as foolish as discouraging the new doctrinally sound songs that have been written by artists today. We must be careful to not corrupt a method of teaching (or worship) nor to do a way with it if it is accomplishing its intended purpose. We must also, at the same time allow new ways of teaching and worship into our services. The universal church is generally slow to change. This is good in that most fads come and go without affecting the church with heresy. But at the same time good methods of worship and teaching are ignored (or even falsely discredited simply because it is new). The church as a whole, as it abides in Christ [2] and seeks to be obedient and faithful to Him will be able to accurately negotiate these treacherous waters.

So perhaps I will add write church history appreciation for kids to my “to do” list.

Dr. Edward Buchanan has written a series of books on sharing church history, the arts, and other church related items with children. Click here to find out more.

[1] Ecclesiastes 1:10-11

[2] John 15:1-11

 

Matthew 4:1-7 “Waiting On the Lord in Order to Make Him Known”

 

Drew Boswell Original Sermon

In the opening chapters of Matthew there are a list of names that explain to us Jesus’ genealogical background and how He is the rightful heir of the throne of David, Jesus is born, and some time later there are wise men who visit, and Mary and Joseph are warned of Herod’s evil plan and they escape to Egypt. We then see the forerunner of Jesus, John the Baptist, who baptizes Jesus in chapter 3. The Father speaks from heaven, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

All of these events prepare the reader for Jesus to begin His public ministry. But the question is, “How would He do this?” All Christians are called to ministry. We are to serve the world around us, share the gospel, teach the truth of Scripture, and use the gifts that God has given us for His glory. But how do we do this? This is what Jesus shows us as He endures a time of temptation, and this is what we will look at today.

 

Culture Shock; A Southern Boy Comes Home

Something happened this week that took me by surprise. I was reared in Russell County Alabama, was picked up by my grandparents for church since I was old enough to walk, and went to a southern university (War Eagle!). It was out of college that I felt called to ministry and was off to seminary in North Carolina. I then was called to be a pastor in Maryland.

Honestly, with eleven years having passed, I don’t really remember the culture differences upon my arrival, but I know there were many. The one that stands out the most was my southern draw. After about seven to eight years it had gone away. I intentionally worked on it, because it would be a point of distraction when I preached or did public speaking.

So when Kimberly and I felt called to move back to the deep south, I was surprised at how I have been reacting to the difference I sense within me. I thought I would instantly be right at home; and in some ways I am, but I other ways I am not. I have felt the inward resistance to allow myself to change to the cultural differences. My children after only a couple of months of school have already begun to break single syllable words into multiple syllables.  They seem to be doing fine, making new friends, and blending in. I on the other hand am slow to change.  If someone were to ask where these differences are, I couldn’t really put my finger on it, only that things are different. But here are a few:

1)   Southern Hospitality is still alive. It has not disappeared during my absence. My family has been overwhelmed by the love from the congregation where we serve, and the welcoming community as a whole. Church functions include vast amounts of food that often times has been hand made. We had so many people bringing us food after our arrival that we could not keep up with thank you cards.

We have experienced several funerals where the church and community bring large dishes for the family where they all eat together. Mourners sit together, eating a home made meal and tell stories of the deceased.

As I was writing this article in Atlanta Bread a man came in and began to ask for money. He was holding a plastic jar with a screw on top. I instantly gave him my rehearsed answer that I had given hundreds of times before. The southern woman sitting across from me instantly reached into her purse and pulled out several ones and gave it to him with a smile. I don’t believe that there really is a raffle for his sick son, but she gave it knowing that it probably was a scam.

2)   Respect for One Another. My children were instructed the first day of school to say, “Yes, Ma’am” and “No, Sir.” As we were introduced to various children and their parents the children would respond in this way (without having to be told to do so).  There is a cultural understanding that adults (especially older adults) are to be treated with a great deal of respect and honor.

3)   The Centrality of the Church in Everyday Life. There are still communities where the family understands how important the church is to their lives, and protects that relationship from encroachment. When we began meeting with Cub Scouts, several of the parents were very vocal about not planning events on Sunday mornings because “we go to church on Sunday.”

Football is king in South Georgia, but there are no practices, scrimmages, weight lifting sessions; nothing is done on Sunday mornings (or Sunday at all for that matter). Students still pray before the local Friday night high school football games, and they even say, “in Jesus name.” Like a cool breeze, it is so refreshing.

Children don’t come to church dressed in cleats and sporting attire. They are there for church; it is not a pit stop on their way to the real event.

Every culture has a negative side (if it didn’t I wouldn’t have a job). So, while church is central to the culture, there will be people there who are not authentic Christ followers. I know, “surprise!” Their belief may even be based on the religious assumption that going to church will earn them a spot in heaven.

I am slow to change, and tend to think about things too much. I over plan, and think too much about worst-case scenarios. I love books like “Worst Case Survival Handbook; the man skills edition.” Perhaps the reason why I resist is that I am not sure what the worst-case scenario would be in this new environment. What I am finding disturbing is that I am beginning to see that I have developed a hard edge. The cold winters of Maryland and hard years of ministry have taken a toll that I had not expected. The southern culture exposes that hard-heartedness and I am not comfortable with that (yet).

 

Institutional Memory

Today is our sixty-fourth day of being the Pastor of Children and Families at First Baptist Church Valdosta in South Georgia. My family and I are being exposed to a new city, new schools for the kids, new friends, new church facility, and new staff to work with.  When any person comes into a new position in an organization, especially a church that has existed for 150 years, there is a base of knowledge that the organization has, that the new person does not possess.

For example, every week that I have been at my new ministry position I have discovered different things about the church and its’ history. I discovered that the youth building used to be a hospital and has a morgue in the basement. I discovered an old safe in one of the front Sunday School rooms. I discovered that we owned a garage across the street and it was filled with all kinds of treasures (like racks of canoes, Boy Scout supplies, a huge Bar-B-Q cooker, etc.) I discovered where my office was located after getting lost several times. This week as I was searching for architectural plans for our children’s building in a remote cabinet in the annals of the sanctuary I discovered a room dedicated to the making of ceramic figurines (which I have now learned is the ceramics room).

So the “rookie” begins the process of learning the organizations history and its’ members. I have learned from talking with our custodian not to get rid of anything unless I ask some key people first. That old beat up raggedy object that you are sure is junk was once used in ministry and whoever led that ministry does not want it removed or thrown away.

The previous youth pastor got into some hot water when he started throwing away the Boy Scout’s pamphlets into a dumpster (which he later had to fish out). Dusty they may have been, “trash” they were not. One man’s junk is truly another man’s treasure.

So along with this history of the organization and it’s stuff is a culture and way of doing things that one wisely should take note of. Let’s call this “institutional memory.” This is the accumulation of experiences and people that culminate into an organization’s history and culture. There are names on plaques, vases, walls, and buildings for a reason.

To pretend that you are the first to explore these waters of ministry is at the very least self-righteous and if taken to the extreme heartless and uncaring. It is because of the previous generation that the church is where it is today. If you love them and respect their pilgrimage before you, they may look to you for leadership. If you ignore them and their journey, you won’t last very long nor will you accomplish very much.

At the same time, those who possess institutional memories should not use this knowledge for personal gain, control, or manipulation. And when it is said, “that’s not how we do things around here,” it stifles creativity and the bringing of new ideas to the table. I have been blessed to have been encouraged and supported every step of the way (in all my sixty-four days.)

God has called me to lead in my new place of ministry, but I am not the first to chart these waters. There have been godly men and women before me. They had great ideas, worked hard, experienced God’s blessing, sacrificially gave, and expanded the kingdom. Now, as I run with the baton now passed on to me, I recognize their accomplishments and their race having been run.  I don’t want to start over at the beginning; I am content to run the race put before me. I am thankful for the faithfulness of others in the past.

_____________________________________________________________________

Three Cliches to Help You Work Through Institutional Memory

1. “Rome Was Not Built In a Day” — Having moved from a church planting environment with no buildings to a very established church with multiple blocks of facilites, I recognize that all that currently exists was not built over night. There have been many generations who have faithfully served the Lord and slowly built what now exists. This is not just brick and mortar, but a good reputation in the community. When you begin a new place of ministry, it is only right to recognize that many have sacrificed so that you are able to do what you do. If you are to make a difference don’t expect to do it over night. Move slowly, carefully, and methodically so that you don’t destroy a work that took decades or even generations to build.

2. “Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder” — It amazes me how fast nostalgia begins to set in amongst a group of people. It always seems that last year was better than today.  We quickly forget that yesterday was filled with heartache and difficulty as well, but today just seems harder. Don’t get upset if people look back with thoughts of “golden years.” God has great plans for you and your generation too. Those saints who have gone to be with the Lord and their service to His church should be honored and remembered.

3. “An oldie, but a goodie” — Don’t dismiss something simply because it is old. Someone has had to deal with the same “issues” that you are having to deal with; why not see what they came up with? Why reinvent the wheel every new generation? Newer is not always better, and older is not always antiquated.

"For by grace you have been saved through faith." Ephesians 2:8

Contact Drew