THE FLABBY BODY OF CHRIST • KEEPING THE LIGHT ON FOR GOD

RETHINKING GOD IN TODAY’S CULTURE.

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 These 12 Core Values That Make Up The DNA of thechurch
Expect the unexpected | Irrelevance is irreverence
Love people when they least expect it and least deserve it | Playing it safe is risky
Pray like it depends on god and work like it depends on you | Everyone is invaluable and irreplaceable
Everything is an experiment | You cannot out give God
Maturity does not equal conformity | Go the extra mile
It's never to late too be who you might have been | Do it right and do it big
COMMUNITY
HOMELESS
CONNECT March 23rd 2010
9am-4pm at Salem First Baptist Church

“Homeless Connect is a one day resource fair

focused on connecting homeless individuals and
those at risk of becoming homeless in Marion/Polk
counties with services to help improve their lives.”

For more information, contact Linda Macrae at 503-585-6232 or macrael@mwvcaa.org

To volunteer, contact HandsOn Mid-Willamette Valley at 503-363-1651 or ksinger-adams@unitedwaymwv.org

WWW.COMMUNITYHOMELESSCONNECT.ORG
 EDITORIAL
RETHINKING DEATH
BY BO & MELISSA LANE
We were rather nervous when Melissa got preg-
nant for the second time. Our first born, Benja-
min, was eleven weeks premature and, because
of the difficulty surrounding his birth, we didn’t
want to put another child through a similar situ-
ation. So, needless to say, our discovery caused
much anxiety for the two of us.
But God, being good, walked us through the
first eight months without many issues and
sooner than we realized we were in the hospital
for the second time. Only this time, the situa-
tion was much healthier than before. Melissa
would spend a few weeks in the hospital gear-
ing up for the baby’s entrance while the doctors
and nurses watched over and cared for her. Our
daughter would be brought into this world a
few weeks early but God was working it all out.
We definitely noticed.
The night our daughter was born was both
triumphant and tragic. For our family, it was
joyous. Yet for another family, it was jaded.
Excitement was brewing in our little hospital
room for a life soon to be born but, in that same
moment, echoes of mourning could already be
heard for a life that was ending. Doctors and
nurses ran back and forth, grabbing this thing
and that thing, running down the hall to a room
with a mother, just a few years older than my
wife, who was dying.
Personally, I found myself in a difficult position.
As I walked down the hall, past the room where
the mother lay dead, my heart broke; a feeling
that usually accompanies such an enormous
loss. “What if that was my wife, my mother?”
were the thoughts going through my head.
But at the same time, I was filled with joy and
anticipation because this night would be the
night I’d meet my beautiful daughter, Bella,
for the first time. It was as if my own personal
universe was being thrown off its axis and into
a whole new dimension. Little did I know this
difficulty would drastically elevate the moment I
stepped outside.
6_RETHINK MONTHLY
Our daughter was born in a small hospital in a
small town in Oregon; the kind of place where
everyone knows everything about every situ-
ation going on everywhere. So when I walked
outside and saw a man trying his hardest to
hold his composure, yet failing to the extreme, I
knew it was the mother’s husband.
He was pacing back and forth talking to some-
one on his cell phone. One moment he was
talking. Another he was weeping. And the next
he was shouting things like “Why?” and “How
am I going to take care of the kids by myself?”
His world was falling apart. His kids wouldn’t
grow up with their mother. The same day I cel-
ebrate the birth of my daughter is the same say
he mourns the death of his wife. If you think
about it, and if you have lost someone close to
you, you can understand just how tragic it can
be.
Two hours later, my daughter was born. She
was beautiful and healthy and alive. And I
boasted my newest treasure for all our family
and friends to see. I took pictures and helped
print her little foot on her birth certificate. It was
triumphant; everything but tragic.
People die. We weep and mourn. People live.
We leap and dance. Death and life - there is
nothing new about either of them. They’ve been
around for, well, the beginning of creation.
We understand this. We live and cope and
continue and refocus and move on but we still
grieve and mourn and cry and remember. We
are surrounded by death as soon as we enter
this world, so from a young age we gather a
common perspective of what death looks and
feels like.
But what if we changed our perception con-
cerning death? What if we look at death as the
greatest gift that life can give?
For those who put their faith and trust in Jesus
Christ, this concept of death immediately
becomes attainable. Our new awareness of
death gives us the ability to turn our mourning
into dancing and our sorrow into joy; a revived
and renewed hope that our lives are not lived in
vein. We hold fast to the promise of Revelation
that “God will wipe every tear from our eyes.
There will be no more death or mourning or
crying or pain, for the old order of things has
passed away.”
So we will continue to weep and mourn for
those who have passed away, only because
we will miss their time here with us. This is
good and normal and right. But our strength
isn’t based on our situation. It comes only from
knowing that God is good and that He’s mak-
ing all things new. And we’re equally thank-
ful that God’s goodness isn’t based on our
situation. It’s based simply on the fact that He
is good. He is holy and wholly righteous. And
knowing this beautiful nugget of truth should
change our situation.
Bo & Melissa remain awestuck
by their Creator and His undying
love for them. They’re thankful
that God entrusted them with the
world’s most beautiful children.
They are also captivated by the
TV show LOST. Just sayin’.
Take a minute and holla at us:
boandmel@rethinkmonthly.com
rethink monthly
MAGAZINE
MARCH / APRIL 2010 - ISSUE 11 FEATURES
EDITORS/PUBLISHERS >
Bo Lane >
bo@rethinkmonthly.com

Melissa Lane >

melissa@rethinkmonthly.com

MANAGING EDITOR >

Connie Andresen >
connie@rethinkmonthly.com

SALES MANAGER >

Susan Trask >
susan@rethinkmonthly.com

ART DIRECTOR >

Vin Thomas >
vin@rethinkmonthly.com

CREDITS >
Cover image by Vanessa Farnell. Additional images
by Kesha Thomas and Vanessa Farnell. All images
are property of their perspective owners and have
been used by permission. All rights reserved.

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS >

Bo & Melissa Lane, Chad Fisher, Michael Olsen,
John W. Whitehead, Grace Fudge, Scott Cornthwaite,
John Fehlen, Stephen W. Simpson

RETHINK MONTHLY >

©2010 Rethink, Inc. No part of this publication may be
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RETHINKMONTHLY.COM_7
 FAITH
CULTURE
DIVIDED WE STAND
BY CHAD FISHER
My wife and I had the pleasure of taking a little
road trip last week with the newest addition to
our family, Macy Lee. When we got home, a full
mailbox and a pile of Wall Street Journals were
laying in my driveway waiting for me to catch up
on a week’s worth of news updates and latest
economic sagas. In that pile of newspapers, a
particular article caught my attention. At first
glance, it seemed like news-filler, but after I
began reading I realized that God was showing
me something profound and beautiful.
It has been 20 years since the Berlin Wall fell.
But deep in the forest of Grafenau, Germany,
a breed of red deer called Ahornia still refuses
to cross the old Iron Curtain. This deer inhabits
the thickly wooded mountains along what
once was the fortified border between West
Germany and Czechoslovakia. At the height
of the Cold War, a high electric fence, barbed
wire and machine-gun-carrying guards cut off
Eastern Europe from the Western world. The
barriers severed the herds of deer on the two
sides as well.
The fence is long gone, and the no-man’s land
where it once stood is now part of Europe’s big-
gest nature preserve. The once-deadly border
area is alive with songbirds nesting in crumbling
watchtowers, foxes hiding in weedy fortifica-
tions and animals not seen there for years.
But one species is boycotting the reunified
animal kingdom: the Red Deer. Herds of them
roam both sides of the old NATO-Warsaw Pact
border but mysteriously turn around when
they approach the since dissolved border, this
although the deer alive today have no memory
of the ominous fence.
One reason, stated by wildlife experts, is
that the deer have traditional trails, passed
on through the generations, with a collective
memory that their grounds end at the erstwhile
barrier. Females, who stay with their mothers
longer than males and spend more time ab-
sorbing their mothers’ movements, stick even
more closely to the traditional turf.
8_RETHINK MONTHLY
In 2002, wildlife experts began tracking the
herds of red deer using electronic collars and
surveying their movement by satellite tracking
and video surveillance at the old borderlines.
Red deer born of herds from the West side will
venture, nose literally touching the now open
air where the wall once stood to divide them,
and they stop. They move no further. Neither
herd has ventured over the place where the
wall once stood, though today, nothing stands
in their way from expanding their territory into
what is now free land for them to roam.
Most of us, like these red deer, have never ven-
tured beyond the wall. For many, we’ve gained
collective memory through things learned and
things experienced which have become divid-
ing walls for us, blocking us from advancing
fully into the territory that Christ has already
predestined for us to wholly obtain. Though
nothing stands in our way, we limit ourselves
by looking at the world through human eyes
rather than through divine eyes. We have been
called, each one of us, to expand, to grow, to
accomplish, to achieve, to take risks, to be
great.
We are not limited in what we can do, become
or accomplish. The biggest limitation that
we face is not the difficulty of what is to be
grasped or obtained but our own insignificant
view of ourselves. It’s our view of ourselves
that blocks us in, keeps us small and limits our
potential. What we need is God’s view of who
we are, what we are to become, what we are to
accomplish.
Genesis 1:26-28 recounts the words of God
toward mankind before the first man and
woman were yet living. God said, “Let us make
man in our image, to rule over all the creatures
and over all the earth…then God blessed them
and said to them, ‘Be fruitful [great, successful,
strong, influential] and increase in number [ex-
pand, grow, create]; fill the earth and subdue it
[without fear and without hesitation, everything
is yours; as big as you can dream there is yet
more for you than that].”
Jeremiah 1:5 says, “Before I formed you in the
womb I knew you, before you were born I set
you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the
nations.”
We’ve been called to be prophets to the na-
tions. Jesus’ last command to His church as He
ascended into heaven was to “Go and make
disciples”, not “Stay put and remain in your
comfort zones.”
Expand. Grow. Create. Influence. Yet how do we
do that when we are stuck behind an invisible
wall?
The church remains divided. We remain
separated by doctrine and denomination. We
remain segregated by culture, color and race.
We have white churches and black churches.
We remain segregated by generation, offering
contemporary services for the young and tra-
ditional services for the old. We remain divided
by the legalism that shapes our worldview and
perpetuates the overwhelmingly justified judg-
ment toward those who believe or look or act
differently than we do.
The church stands with its’ nose against an
invisible wall that was destroyed thousands
of years ago by Jesus’ sacrifice to unite all of
mankind to it’s creator and return all of creation
to it’s fruitful beginnings.
Galatians 3:26-29 says to all of us, “You are all
sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for
all of you who were baptized into Christ have
clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither
Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female,
for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong
to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and
heirs according to the promise.”
Freedom is ours. We are rightful heirs to the
promises of God. All we have to do is step
across the line.
Chad has spent the last decade
as a youth pastor and worship
leader and now leads a growing
team of people committed to
planting a new church in 2010.
Chad lives in Columbus, Ohio
with his wife Katie and two
daughters, Morgan and Macy.
Join us on Saturday, April 3rd starting at 1pm
for a free community egg hunt, snacks,
popcorn, drinks, movie and much more.

Fun for the whole family. All are welcome!

Salem
Harritt School | 2112 Linwood Street NW in4th at 10am at Harritt!
April
And don’t miss our Annual Pancake Feed on Sunday,
intchurch.com | 503.383.2287
Brought to you by Hope Hoint Church | www.hopepo
10_RETHINK MONTHLY
 Recently, I was invited to speak to
a group of affluent, upper middle
class retirees. The host’s estate
was extensive, his home airy and
spacious, original art graced the
walls, and the guests ranged from
dignitaries to activists from the civil
rights era.
I had been invited to lead a discussion on
ways to minimize political polarization and
find common ground, and I agreed, hoping
that these people, who are well-educated,
well-connected and well-to-do, would want
to get involved in the freedom struggle and
effect change within their spheres of influ-
ence. Instead, I came face to face with those
I’ve been writing about for years--materially
comfortable, disconnected from reality and
totally oblivious to what’s been going on in the
American government as far as the erosion of
our civil liberties and the amassing of power
by the federal government.
I quickly realized that what these people call
polarization is actually Americans challeng-
ing the status quo, especially the so-called
government elite. To my surprise, I found
myself on the receiving end of a group lecture
in which I was reprimanded for being too
negative in my views of the government. I
was also informed that I need to have “faith”
in our leaders and refrain from criticizing our
president because Americans still live in the
best country in the world. In other words, my
patriotism was called into question.
But is this really what patriotism or loving your
country is all about? If so, then Thomas Jef-
ferson and the great freedom fighters of our
times would be considered unpatriotic.
I felt like a radical extremist just sitting there.
After all, I spend my time calling government
leaders to account for their actions, and when
they fail to abide by the Constitution, I actively
and vocally exercise my rights as a citizen. In
fact, the First Amendment does more than
give us a right to criticize our country--it makes
it a civic duty.
It didn’t take long for me to see that my
view of what it means to be American was
diametrically opposed to that of the group. I
belong to the camp that equates patriotism
with activism--even when that activism may
be perceived as extremism. Martin Luther King
Jr. put it best when, after being accused of
extremism, responded, “The question is not
whether we will be extremists, but what kind
of extremist will you be?”
This group, however, which is representative
of a substantial cross-section of Americans,
seems to think that faith in the government
and a positive attitude are enough to get you
through the day--that you’re not a good citizen
if you criticize the government. Comfortable in
their materialism, they have come to believe
that being a good citizen means doing one
thing--voting.
The problem we face today, however, is that
America requires more than voters. It requires
doers--a well-informed and very active group
of doers--if we are to have any chance of
holding the government accountable and
maintaining our freedoms.
After all, it was not idle rhetoric that prompted
the Framers of the Constitution to begin with
the words “We the people.” In the words of
former Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl War-
ren, throughout the extraordinary document
that is the Constitution and Bill of Rights,
“there is an implicit assumption that we, the
people, will preserve our democratic rights by
acting responsibly in our enjoyment of them.”
This ultimate responsibility for maintaining our
freedoms then rests with the people.
The Framers of the Constitution knew very
well that whenever and wherever democratic
governments had failed, it was because the
people had abdicated their responsibility as
guardians of freedom. They also knew that
whenever in history the people denied this
responsibility, an authoritarian regime arose
which eventually denied the people the right to
govern themselves. All governments fall into
two classifications: those with a democratic
form and those that are authoritarian, ruled by
an individual or some oligarchic elite.
Acting responsibly, however, means that there
are certain responsibilities and duties without
which our rights would become meaningless.
Duties of citizenship extend beyond the act
of voting, which is only the first step in acting
responsibly. Citizens must be willing to stand
and fight to protect their freedoms. And if
need be, it will entail criticizing the govern-
ment. This is patriotism in action.
What this means is that we can still be patriotic
and love our country while disagreeing with
the government or going to court to fight for
freedom. Responsible citizenship means being
outraged at the loss of others’ freedoms, even
when our own are not directly threatened. It
also means remembering that the prime func-
tion of any free government is to protect the
weak against the strong.
Love of country will sometimes entail carrying
a picket sign or going to jail, if necessary, to
preserve liberty. And it will mean speaking
up for those with whom you might disagree.
Tolerance for dissent, we must remember, is
a vital characteristic of the citizens of a demo-
cratic society. As Supreme Court Justice Oliver
Wendell Holmes said, “If there is any principle
of the Constitution that more imperatively
calls for attachment than any other, it is the
principle of free thought--not free thought for
those who agree with us but freedom for the
thought that we hate.”
Loving your country does not mean being
satisfied with the status quo or the way gov-
ernment is being administered. Government
invariably, possibly inevitably, oversteps its
authority. As human beings are not perfect,
governments, because they are constructs of
human beings, will necessarily be imperfect
as well.
Love of country, it must be emphasized, is
always strengthened by both a knowledge
of history and of the Constitution and, when
need be, acting on that knowledge. “If we have
no appreciation of the past,” Justice Warren
recognized, “we can have little understanding
of the present or vision for the future.”
The problems facing our generation are nu-
merous and are becoming incredibly complex.
Technology, which has developed at a rapid
pace, offers those in power more invasive and
awesome possibilities than ever before. Never
in American history has there been a more
pressing need to maintain the barriers in the
Constitution erected by our Founders to check
governmental power and abuse.
We’re at a very crucial crossroads in American
history. We have to be well-informed, not only
about current events but well-versed in the ba-
sics of our rights and duties as citizens. If not,
in perceived times of crisis, we may very well
find ourselves in the clutches of a governmen-
tal system that is alien to everything America
stands for. And make no mistake about it, the
mass of citizens will continue to be misin-
formed, and as astute political leaders have
recognized in the past, they can be easily led.
Therein is the menace to our freedoms.
As Hermann Goering, one of Hitler’s top mili-
tary leaders, opined:
It is always a simple matter to drag the
people along, whether it is a democracy, or
a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a
communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice,
the people can always be brought to the
bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you
have to do is to tell them they are being at-
tacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack
of patriotism and exposing the country to
danger. It works the same in any country.
RETHINKMONTHLY.COM_11
Cries Out
A Village

Cries
A Village

Out by Grace Fudge

12_RETHINK MONTHLY
I sat on the dry stubble and dirt, the traumatized and trembling earth, rocking back
and forth in sobs. I was asking why, for a people with so many needs, for a people
having such a passion for Christ, for the children just having received prayer for
protection and provision, and for the children who, just hours ago, had celebrat-
ed the birth of Christ with their sponsors: why, why did this happen? My whole
being was encompassed in deep anguish. Those around me were in stupor
and unbelief, prayer, and tears. To have heard the sound of the earth growl
and moan in its transition stage, to have seen the countryside “crack”
and watch as the dust erupts skyward, all the while hearing the hys-
terical cries and wailing of the village peoples in unison, a crying out
to the Lord, a crying out to the gods that could not promise “I will
never leave you nor forsake you.”

Seven days earlier, I left Portland Airport at 6AM with anticipa-

tion, not fully knowing what this mission had in store for me
in Grand Goave, Haiti, with Lifeline Christian Mission (LCM).
There were six women in my group – my sister Cece Taylor
and her friend Rosie Thompson along with Rosie’s daughter
Cierra, and twin sisters Janna and Dee Peters. We felt that our
jet’s “777” destination from Texas to Miami was significant.

Over the next number of days, meeting the numerous inter-

preters (all Haitian men-of-Christ that had been “sponsor chil-
dren” themselves through LCM) left me in admiration for their
gentle and compassionate nature. They had a great sense of
humor, which I really enjoyed, and it was easy to converse with
them. They were most eager to help in any capacity and they
went out of their way to make our activities and programs run
smoothly.

I was captivated by the women on “Women’s Day” with their passion for
the Lord and dedication in worshiping and gathering with one another (some took
two days to get to the compound and by no means was it in a comfortable vehicle).
Their voices of praise, singing, and worship, the memorization of scripture, both the
young and the old – they gathered for praise unto the Lord. In a country so differ-
ent from what I am accustomed, we worshipped the same God, we sang the same
songs. I found that there was no barrier between the two different cultures when
Christ was the focus.

But for a large majority of Haiti, Christ isn’t the focus.

Haiti is about the size of Maryland and about two-thirds mountainous. The history
of Haiti is not necessarily a pretty one. Revolutions, dictatorships, political tur-
moil, the AIDS epidemic causing a final collapse in the economy, poor infrastruc-
ture, and hurricanes only begin to paint a picture of a country where the people
are oppressed - a look into the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere.

Roman Catholicism is the official religion of Haiti with voodooists believing that
their religion can coexist with Catholicism. Otherwise, Voodoo is considered
the country’s national religion. The Protestants, however, go up against voo-
dooism and have brought Christianity into the county, bringing in not only the
Word, but they have educated, fed, and cared for a people who would other-
wise be struggling with malnutrition, severe poverty, rioting, disease, and peril.

Being on the cement roof of a two-story building during the 7.0 magnitude
earthquake was sheer terror. It was a true miracle that the building did not
collapse; the contortion of the building was ghastly, and yet it did not crack
as I was riding on a wave of cement that heaved and rolled. I look at what
the country of Haiti went through, a country that at its best is considered
“poverty stricken” by our standards and what are “slums” to us could be
its better parts of the country. To endure a disaster that they were very
unfamiliar with, a cataclysm that tore their lives apart, a tragedy leaving
them homeless, the heartache of losing loved ones and having loved ones
injured or unaccounted for, is just so unfathomable.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

RETHINKMONTHLY.COM_13
 A Village Cries Out Continued...
The Reverend quickly goes from group to group as we are huddled
out in the field, making sure we are okay and making sure that there
are not any immediate needs amongst the women at LCM. His own
village is in turmoil and despair. A young Haitian man is seen, arms
heavenward, praising the Lord in Heaven. It is such an incompre-
hensible situation, yet these people know that God is in control, God
is good.
The evening was long. The village peoples poured into the grounds
of LCM (all the walls around the compound had come down).
The tremors continued. With each tremor, the cry of the peoples
increased. What rose above all else was “Jesus, Jesus.” There were
believers and unbelievers that walked onto the compound. They
came in not knowing what was happening, but knowing that they
were in a safe place. And throughout the night, they continued to
pour in, families all huddled together on the ground, some crying,
some praising God, some voodooist reaching out for that which was
unattainable through their veneration. A baby was born. There were
reports of fatalities. The wounded were starting to come in - grue-
some doesn’t quite cover what was seen and heard. The night was
long and sickening, with the unknown awaiting all.
Light of a new day brought perspective to some, reality to others,
but mostly fear to the Haitians. We went out amongst the hundreds
of people encamped in the field, along with some of the interpret-
ers, and prayed with and for the Haitians. It was a very hot day, but
14_RETHINK MONTHLY
we cried together; we held each other. We could not immediately
fix anything, but offering hope and loving on them was imperative
in knowing that we were all in God’s hands. We prayed with those
that had lost loved ones. We prayed over those that were injured.
We prayed over those that had missing family members. We prayed
for provision, hope, and healing. We gave out clothing for those that
were in need. We cared for the wounded through LCM’s medical
clinic, although the medical supplies were very limited and the inju-
ries were great. More babies were delivered; more information came
in reporting the loss of loved ones and severe injuries. Moreover,
through it all I felt so broken, so empty, knowing that I endured this
quake without a scratch or a bruise or having lost a loved one. I had
food and water; I had a home to go to.
The devotionals that had been planned out for our week at the com-
pound, months before we ever went, were focused on God’s protec-
tion and provision. Little did any of us know that, at the beginning of
the week, we would refer to each one of them and, in wonderment,
exclaim that we were being prepared in a mighty way.
The night following the quake, there was the most beautiful and
incredible worship service under the stars in Grand Goave, Haiti that
was heard for miles. The Christian Haitians sang out to a mighty
God, and I walked amongst these people, singing in English as they
sang in Creole. There was such a peace about it, even though the
earth trembled and the buildings still shook. As I lay outdoors for the
night with a large number of other women, encamped in the yard,
I would sometimes fall asleep, only to awaken to the beauty of the
praise.
Through the nights, the Christian Haitian interpreters were protec-
tive, very attentive, in prayer, and made sure we were all right. One
such man would always come up and ask, “Are you okay, my
sister?” When I awoke the morning (2:30 AM) that we were to leave,
they were all together in prayer for us, praying for our safety, as
the roads we were about to embark upon were dangerous, roads
of uncertainty due to bridges that were damaged, roads that had
split from the quake, and roads where we could be ambushed. They
broke out in song where you could just feel the spirit moving, and
before we loaded the bus, they went from one to another, hugging
and praying for us.
I look at the amount of faith that these Christian Haitians have. I
went into a county that is poor, so deprived, and very underprivi-
leged. Yet they are richer than most of us ever will be. I look at a
people who have so little, yet the simplicity of their lives and their
need for provision and protection allow them to seek God in great
measure. They know who their creator is; they know from where all
blessings come; they know that God is in control. One such inter-
preter likened LCM in this manner – “God used Lifeline as he used
Joseph” - God had brought this ministry to Grand Goave to prepare
them for what was coming, to bring in provisions for their peoples,
and to help guide them in their walk with Christ in a country that is
so full of corruption and iniquity.
Since the quake, LCM has been able to bring in help, and along
with the US Military, have handed out thousands and thousands
of meals and have played a big role in the medical care of the
people in the village and outlying areas, and have started cleanup
of destroyed homes. A recent report that I received from Gretchen
DeVoe, Lifeline Christian Mission Co-founder was full of promise
and hope. She states: God is sovereign and He is doing something
here in Haiti!
The spiritual presence of our Lord can be seen and felt in every bit of
energy that is expended by His people. And the eyes of the people
of Haiti are on His mighty works.
Haiti continues to need our prayers and our help. Haiti is facing
some very big challenges. But things are shaking in Haiti, not just
from aftershocks. People are coming to Christ. There have been
a great number of baptisms. The Haitian President declared the
weekend of February 12-14 as “days for prayer and fasting.” People
are turning to God for their needs. God is in control, and with God, all
things are possible.
RETHINKMONTHLY.COM_15
 You
Did It
For MeA Local Girl Saw A Need And Will Stop At
Nothing To Help Those In Her Community

16_RETHINK MONTHLY
“Unless someone like you cares a
whole, awful lot, things aren’t going
to get better. They’re NOT!”
Dr. Seuss, The Lorax
From a young age, Dr. Seuss taught many of us that it takes an ex-
traordinary effort to affect change for the better. In the book, children
are encouraged to deeply care because if they will not, things will not
get better. This is a profound lesson that Dr. Seuss teaches us.
What does it mean to care a whole, awful lot about something? If I care
this much, is my effort going to affect change for good? Can I really
make a difference?
In Fall of 2009, the Youth Pastors at Salem Alliance Church in Salem,
Oregon challenged the high school and middle school students to
come up with a way to help solve an issue in the Salem-Keizer area.
The idea was to find a way to be Jesus with skin to the area – that this
would both teach students how to be loved and how to love others
through the love of Jesus. After all of the ideas came in, the youth
groups would then vote on the best idea- the idea that they would actu-
ally help out with.
West Salem High School senior Whitney Ferrin, an attendee of the
high school group at Salem Alliance decided to take this challenge to
heart. Whitney researched the Salem-Keizer area to find a problem that
was waiting desperately for a solution.
Her findings? Disheartening. Whitney learned that there were 900
homeless students in the Salem-Keizer School District during the
2008-2009 school year. The magnitude of this statistic is astonishing.
Whitney teamed up with Paula Hoffart, one of the Youth Pastors at
Salem Alliance, to figure out how to help these students. The idea that
they came up with is to sell t-shirts.
“We wanted to sell a t-shirt that we would actually want to wear,” says
Ferrin, “When the Give A Shirt idea came up, we both said, ‘I’d wear
that!’”
An edgy name gets people talking. Try wearing one of their shirts
around town. People interact with you in ways you would never expect.
After the youth groups voted for Whitney’s idea, the production of
shirts began. The rest is history. In the past 3 months, Give A Shirt
has sold over 1,000 shirts at schools, festival booths, and on www.
igiveashirt.org.
From the start, Whitney wanted to help the students get clothing. She
found that students were harassed and made fun of at school for
clothing and hygiene issues.
Homeless students have so many factors distracting from their
education. Getting to school can sometimes be last priority for these
students because of life’s other issues.
“If I was made fun of at school for reasons that were beyond my
control, I wouldn’t want to go either,” says Whitney, “We want to help
these students be able to rise out of the situation they are in.”
Since education is distracted for the homeless students, Whitney
decided she wanted to try to eliminate as many of those elements as
possible.
Give A Shirt partners with a contact at the Salem-Keizer School District
in order to fill needs that other social programs cannot fill adequately,
allowing the students to get back in the classroom and continue their
education.
Once each quarter, the homeless students are invited to a party where
they can get free medical attention, hang out, play Wii, eat lunch, and
sign up for field trips to go shopping for new clothes that they will enjoy
wearing.
When a middle-school homeless student was told that she would
get to go shopping for new clothes, her face lit up. She was amazed
that somebody would want to help her. Later in the day, at lunchtime,
another girl mentioned that she hadn’t eaten in two days.
In Matthew 25: 34-36, while sitting on the Mount of Olives, Christ says:
“Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are
blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the
foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was
thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you
welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and
you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’”
Whitney says that the proceeds of t-shirt sales help Give A Shirt ac-
complish their mission statement: “Give Hope, Restore Dignity.”
“Succeeding is getting the students clothes,” says Whitney, “We have
already succeeded, but we must continue to succeed. It’s a big deal.
Kids need to be able to see people who care about them.”
Some people have dreamt of Give A Shirt expanding and franchising to
other areas with similar needs. When asked about this, Whitney smiled.
“That would be awesome and completely affirming of what we are do-
ing here in Salem,” acknowledged Whitney, “But we need to fill areas
of great need in each community. That might not be homelessness
somewhere else.”
Caring a “whole, awful lot” is hard to do in a culture that constantly
blurs the lines between needs and wants. The homeless students in
Salem are struggling to even satisfy their basic needs.
Give A Shirt has a wise founder. She understands what Christ was
talking about in Matthew 25 about serving those who have needs. She
heard the message that Dr. Seuss teaches in The Lorax. She is lead-
ing a large group of people to affect change for a group of homeless
students in great need.
Give A Shirt is helping students in the Salem-Keizer School District,
and the organization’s influence is growing rapidly in Salem, Oregon.
There remains a question that needs to be answered. What are the
great needs that need to be filled in your area? Will you Give A Shirt?
RETHINKMONTHLY.COM_17
 Keeping The Light On For God
by John Fehlen

18_RETHINK MONTHLY
 I
have been reading the Book of Exodus lately.
In it we discover such great detail regarding the
construction, décor, and maintenance of the temple
of the Lord. If you’ve ever read through Exodus,
then you too have discovered the incredible minutia.
Frankly, it can be a bit mind-numbing. Every detail has a cor-
responding detail. Everything has a purpose and a place - it’s
amazing and awe-inspiring, yet, it can be overwhelming.
So, just when my eyes were beginning to gloss over my heart
was captured by these verses in Exodus 27:
“And you shall command the children of Israel that they
bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to cause
the lamp to burn continually. In the tabernacle of meeting,
outside the veil which is before the Testimony, Aaron and
his sons shall tend it from evening until morning before the
LORD. It shall be a statute forever to their generations on
behalf of the children of Israel.”
Here we discover God’s command to the priests that there
should always be a light left on in the temple. The inner court
must always have illumination. The lamps were to be filled with
pure olive oil. The process by which olive oil is harvested and
refined is pretty amazing. There are various grades of oil, and
the command was such that only the purest form was to be
brought to the inner court to keep the lamp burning day and
night.
Throughout Biblical history, we discover that oil is often used
as a typology of the Holy Spirit and His anointing presence.
From this passage, one can surmise that the Lord God desired
that there be a visual reminder of His Presence always burning
brightly within the temple and before the people. God’s desire
for His manifold Presence to be expressed, enjoyed, and
exalted remains today. He wants His life-giving Presence and
Power to be evident in our churches.
And yet, how often have we been a part of, or at least aware
of, congregations in which God’s Presence has not dwelt for
some time? These are empty shells, white-washed tombs,
and shadows of their former selves. It’s sad to find churches
with beautiful architecture, but lacking the life of God’s Spirit.
How does this happen? Who is to blame when the lights are
barely on, and God is certainly not at home?
The better question might be: “How can we, in our postmodern
culture, insure that the Presence of God still burns brightly
within our gatherings?” I believe there are two components
that are found in the Exodus 27 passage.
The People BRING It
The people of Israel were commanded to bring the pure oil to
the temple for the lamp to remain lit. There is a responsibility
on their part that is often overlooked today. Our contempo-
rary churches have largely become spectator based in which
folks rate the service like that of an episode of American Idol,
or So You Think You Can Dance? In large part, the leaders of
the local church have a heavy expectation to “bring it,” and if
there seems to be a lack of God’s Presence, then the services
are rated accordingly. In this passage we discover the opposite
expectation. The people were to “bring it.” Let me repeat: THE
PEOPLE BRING IT.
Imagine with me what would happen when Spirit-filled believ-
ers come together and collectively bring the indwelling Pres-
ence of God with them. Our gatherings would be lit up! Church
services would be alive with the collective spiritual energy that
is generated by God’s people full of God’s Spirit.
Now that’s where the pastor’s role begins.
The Pastor TENDS It
Aaron and his sons were the priests of the temple. They were
commanded to tend to the lamp from evening to morning. That
would probably involve filling the lamps with oil, keeping the
wicks trimmed, and watching the flame.
What is notably absent from this passage? Simply: bringing
oil was not their responsibility. The role of the priest involved
tending. Today in our churches, we have pastors that are given
the same role of keeping the lamp burning with the oil that the
people bring.
I have known good and Godly leaders that struggled in their
place of ministry service. There are a number of reasons why
this could be the case, but it occurs to me that perhaps they
were trying to keep a lamp burning without oil. These well-
meaning pastors have too great an expectation upon them to
be both bringer and tender. That is an undue presumption that
leads to a high burnout rate for pastoral leaders. To be sure,
our pastors ought to be spiritually alive people that embody the
Presence of the Living God. Yet, often they are expected to be
the sole source. This is akin to lighting the pastor on fire while
everyone stands around and watches the show. Have our
churches become Pastor Shows? If so, are we OK with this?
What will the fallout be when the heavy yoke of bringer and
tender becomes too much?
Let’s stop placing this undue burden upon our church leader-
ship. They are called to tend to that which people bring to the
assembly, and not the other way around. This is the appropri-
ate place where the Kingdom of God becomes a partnership:
people and pastor.
Together we can keep the light on for God.
RETHINKMONTHLY.COM_19
 CULTURE
SNOW WHITE: ONE ORPHAN AMONG MILLIONS
BY MICHAEL OLSEN
Twenty years ago I met Snow White: Porcelain
white skin, black hair, and a wide smile greet-
ing everyone, and I do mean everyone, who
was within hearing distance of her “Hello.”
If you ever met her, you probably would ask
where the seven dwarfs were. I had the same
thought.
“Nobody is this nice,” was the way a friend
of hers described her personality. I first met
Nancy, aka Snow White, in St. Louis, MO. We
both were airline employees; she was a flight
attendant and I worked as a safety instructor
at the Training and Operations department.
We met during a lunch break at the TWA Train-
ing Center in St. Louis. She asked me if she
could join the table where I was sitting. I was
having lunch with a church youth group who
were at the training center for a tour. Nancy
overheard the conversation I was having with
the Youth Pastor concerning the power of
prayer. Nancy asked the Youth Pastor and
me if we really believed Jesus answered all
prayers. I told her that I had no reason to doubt
that He didn’t. She explained her lifelong
prayer was very close to being answered.
Nancy would soon, possibly that afternoon,
discover who her biological mother was and
where she was located.
Nancy continued to share with us that she
interviewed to be Snow White at Disneyworld
in Orlando, Florida after her graduation from
community college. Throughout her school
years, people always compared her to the
Disney animation character Snow White, not
only because of her physical likeness, but as
well, her “charming ways.” Apparently, the
interviewers thought the same. During the
background investigation, Disney personnel
called and requested more information about
her parents. She explained that she was raised
by her adoptive mother and really did not
know much about her parents. The personnel
worker said she would be in touch. She was
recalled to Orlando and was offered a one
year contract as a cast member to play Snow
White, on one condition. Because of her heavy
“southern” accent, she would be restricted in
her scripts. “Welcome to the magic kingdom”
20_RETHINK MONTHLY
or “Hello, how are you” would be the extent
of her verbal communication with the park
visitors. She said she became very good at ‘lip
syncing.’ She had our lunch table in hysterics!
That conversation with Disney personnel
touched a spark with Nancy. She became
more curious where her parents were, or better
yet, who they were. In a very emotional voice,
Nancy described how one road leading to her
biological parents’ whereabouts led to another
roadblock; a turnpike of information would
end up as a dirt path to nowhere. Her adoptive
mother and father provided all they knew, but
as always, the information was incomplete.
It wasn’t until she met her future husband
Richard at a church function that the ice age
of information she desired began to melt. He
was a pediatrician and had compassion for
orphans. He worked many hours providing
free medical care for children living in foster
homes. More importantly, he really believed
God answered all prayers, and soon they both
were about to witness an answer to Nancy’s
prayer.
Nancy was in St. Louis on a special assign-
ment. During this same time, Richard had
been attending a medical conference in
Memphis. At the conference, Richard met an
alumnus of his medical school. This acquain-
tance, Peter, had gone on to become a pedi-
atric surgeon. As they were sharing stories
about medical cases, families, and friends,
Richard told him about Nancy’s plight in
locating her biological parents. Peter said that
he went through the same thing in that he,
after 12 years, located his mother. His father
died a year before he had located his mother.
Richard was ready to ask how he pulled off all
that detective work when Peter asked, ‘what
is your wife’s middle name?” “Jane” was his
response; “Nancy Jane.”
“Richard,” Peter asked, “what state was Nancy
adopted in and when was she born?” Richard
supplied that information and showed another
picture of Nancy. Peter studied Richards’s pic-
ture and said, “Richard, I believe Nancy is my
younger sister by one year.” Peter pulled out
a recent picture of him standing alongside his
mother. The similarities of Peter’s mother were
unmistakable. Peters’ mom could be Nancy’s
older sister; a senior Snow White if you will.
Peter added that his mom told him that she
gave him and her daughter up for adoption
because of her and his father’s alcoholism.
Peter’s parents eventually went their separate
ways with no desire to remain in contact with
the children. She had spent most of her life
working in a textile mill in Marietta, Georgia.
Richard stared at Peter and in unison both
yelled, “I got to make a call!” They could not
get to a phone fast enough. Richard called
Nancy at her hotel in St. Louis and said,
“Honey, God has answered your prayers. I
believe your mom is alive in Marietta, Georgia.”
Peter called his ‘mom’ and as well, contacted
the courthouse where his paper trail began in
locating his mom.
Everything checked out, and Peter forwarded
all the information to Nancy and Richard. Now
Nancy was waiting on the call from Lillian, her
mom, to verify everything.
The next day I saw Nancy at the St. Louis
Airport. I asked if “mom” called. Nancy replied
with her Snow White smile, “Prayer has been
answered Michael; I’m going home to see
mom today.”
Michael was the Director of
Ministries for the Salem Union
Gospel Mission for 10 years.
Prior to his work at UGM, he
retired from the U.S.Army after
21 years and worked for Trans
World Airlines in New York after
his military retirement. He and
his wife Wendy live in Salem.
Michael can be reached at mjeccl4@gmail.com.
 
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“Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit
orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted
from the world” James 1:27
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Nancy’s story came to mind as I watched the orphan tragedy in Haiti 
over the last month. Nancy’s story was a good orphan story; most sto-
ries about orphans do not have Nancy’s ending. As I began to research
how to help the people in Haiti, especially the orphans, I was reminded
of how large the orphan plight is worldwide. MSNBC reported that “be-
fore the quake, an estimated 15 percent of all children in Haiti were said 4BUVSEBZ
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to care for him or her. However, the United Nations Children Fund
(UNICEF), Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS)
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and other groups label any child that has lost one parent as an orphan.
In this approach, a maternal orphan is a child whose mother has died,
a paternal orphan is one whose father has died and a double orphan McDonald’s of Oregon
is one who lost both parents. In the United States, one legal definition and SW Washington

used is a minor bereft through “death or disappearance of, abandon-

ment or desertion by, or separation or loss from, both parents.”

Whatever the cause of a child becoming an orphan, the numbers are

staggering worldwide. In Afghanistan there are an estimated 1.5 million
orphans due to years of war. In China it is estimated 573,000 children
are in orphanages and 650,000 orphans in Russia. In Myanmar, the
former country of Burma, the figure is a staggering 1.7 million.

With 100,000 orphans due to the earthquake deaths of their parents,

the Haitian government is now faced with well over a quarter of a
million orphans. Before the earthquake there were 1,700 professional
missionary workers in Haiti where 60 percent were dedicated to the
orphan plight. From what I read, that is about the average amount of
missionary workers in Latin American countries with a population of
10 million. That’s a lot of children for 900 people to care for. By some
estimates, Haiti has more nongovernmental organizations per capita
than any other place on earth. They are doing the Lord’s work, espe-
cially these days, but even a blizzard of these efforts do not seem to put
a dent in the orphan population. However, a 2002 report by Dr Geoff
Foster showed that Faith Based Organizations (FBO’s) were the “most
viable institutions at both national and local levels and have developed
experience in addressing the multi-dimensional impact of AIDS and its
particular impact on children.”

Although the orphan population seems insurmountable, extraordinary

results are being witnessed by many missionaries worldwide. Improve-
ment in children’s basic health, education, and most importantly, being
raised with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, is a daily occurrence. Not only in
Haiti, but worldwide. Inquire with your church the best way to help the
orphans of the world. You’ll never know if a Snow White story will enter
your life.
 OPINION
THE FLABBY BODY OF CHRIST
BY STEPHEN W. SIMPSON
Church is boring. I don’t ever recall hopping out
of bed on Sunday morning jazzed about the
sermon, even when the preacher was good. I’ve
never driven to church in anticipation of hearing
the choir or the worship band, even when they
included remarkable musicians. When I went, it
was to see my friends. I wanted to talk. Sunday
school and Bible study were okay, but breeze-
way and parking lot conversations were the
most invigorating. My utmost communion with
the Body of Christ didn’t even happen on the
church premises. That happened in some loud
restaurant that offered free refills of Diet Coke
that helped me power on past noon and large
portions that would render me unconscious
fifteen minutes after I got home.
Now that I have kids, I don’t really get to have
church anymore. Our four year-old quadruplets
(all natural, so step-off, octo-haters!) keep us
scurrying during the breaks. I go to church for
them now. Statistics on church attendance,
especially for men my age, suggest that I’m
not alone. Maybe the problem isn’t me, after all.
Maybe something is wrong with church.
As much as postmodern evangelicals bandy
about the word “community,” our gatherings
have changed very little. Stylistic alterations
might add some hipster flair, but the focal point
of the liturgical week remains theater. A dozen
or so people perform for a few hundred that
sit, stand, kneel, pray, and sing on command.
We squeeze real community into the gaps,
between events with a hierarchical structure.
Not only is this a long way from Biblical models
of the early Christian church, it’s a breeding
ground for messy group dynamics. And, again,
it’s boring.
Church today, whether a cathedral, a mega-alu-
minum warehouse, or a little wooden building
in the country, has little in common with the
New Testament church. In the first century there
was still teaching, prayer, and worship, but the
early church was about community. Paul’s let-
ters paint a picture of people living together and
collectively figuring out what it meant to follow
Christ. The authority of the leaders and teach-
ers wasn’t a forgone conclusion. They were in
dialogue with their congregations. Paul himself
22_RETHINK MONTHLY
often had to defend his position of authority
and many of his letters are part of an ongoing
doctrinal debate. You get the sense, however,
that even theological issues were somewhat
secondary. The focus was a meal, not a class
or a worship service. Some early Christians en-
joyed the community meal so much that Paul
had to tell them to tone it down because they
were partying a little too hard.
Nowadays, it’s hard to imagine most Chris-
tians getting too carried away having a good
time together. Church is an adjunct to profes-
sional and familial communities. We get up on
Sunday, drive, park, sit, listen, sing, pray, chat,
and go home. Even if we’re involved in a small
group, the relationships are usually secondary.
The early Christians learned and grew through
relationship. It’s plastered all over the New
Testament. Yet, we still structure our religion
around one guy, and it’s not Jesus.
Churches often grow for the wrong reason.
If you don’t find church boring, it’s probably
because of a talented preacher. He’s smart, but
moreover, entertaining. Big, active churches
are cults of personality, not communities. Try
to imagine Mars Hill in Seattle without Mark
Driscoll. Try to imagine the other one without
Rob Bell (though at least he had the wisdom
to abdicate his throne). Try to imagine Lake-
wood Church without Joel Osteen. You can’t.
When the focus turns to Christ, it’s because a
showman gets our attention first. We don’t find
God in each other. The Body of Christ has an
enormous head atop a weak, flabby body.
Though pastors give “servant leadership” lip-
service at leadership conferences, few enter
the ministry out of a desire to submit and suffer
for others. How could they? How can we expect
our leaders to be authentic when theater is the
center of our religious week? How can some-
one consent to shepherd the flock as a Man of
God without being narcissistic? Any leader in
the modern church needs at least a little bit of
narcissism to survive. No one is drawn to such
a job unless they enjoy power and attention.
A little narcissism isn’t really the problem. We
need to like ourselves and have a healthy
sense of entitlement. But when these traits
reach a clinical level in the form of Narcissistic
Personality Disorder (NPD), it’s poison to the
body of Christ. In my fifteen years as a psycho-
therapist, I have encountered few human sys-
tems so consistently dysfunctional as church
staffs. I’ve heard of pastors doing things that
would make the most ambitious CEO’s blush.
Though most of us only hear about this when
a high-profile church leader’s grandiosity leads
to recklessness, most of the time acrimony and
dysfunction continue behind the scenes for
years. When we rely on the talents and titillating
vision of one man instead of the slow, silent life
of community, it’s easy for people to get hurt.
After spending a thousand words twitting the
Sunday service, I should probably come up with
an alternative. But I don’t think that’s a good
idea. I’m too narcissistic as it is, and I don’t want
to be the one to tell you how it’s supposed to
be. We need to decide. We need to figure out,
once again, what it means to follow Christ
together. This is a plea, not a prescription. I want
church to be fun again. By fun, I don’t mean
entertaining or topical or cool. I can get that at
concerts and movies, and they do a much bet-
ter job than the church ever will. No, I want to
talk. I want to listen, but to a friend instead of a
sermon. I want to be taught, but only if I can ask
questions and participate in dialogue. Mostly,
I just want to eat, drink, laugh, and enjoy other
people. That’s where I find God.
Stephen W. Simpson is a
psychologist, writer and
professor at Fuller Theological
Seminary in Pasadena,
California. This article was first
published on PatrolMag.com.
 N
• SERVICE AND INSTALLATIO IAL
RC
• RESIDENTIAL AND COMME CTRIC
ELE
• HEAT PUMPS, AC, GAS AND

Impacted by Homosexuality?

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homosexual desires? embracing homosexuality? how to offer support?

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We’re Here to Help message of freedom from homosexual desire and behavior. We offer
support to individuals, churches, and those facing the reality of a
homosexual friend or family member.

All communication with Mid-Valley Fellowship is confidential.

541.928.2164 y support@midvalleyfellowship.org
www.midvalleyfellowship.org