Pastor Brian's Blog

During the May meeting, members of the Trinity Church Council participated in an exercise to identify some of the core values of Trinity Church.   I asked people to reflect on what first attracted them to Trinity and what made them want to be involved with Trinity Church as leaders.    Based on these responses, people listed values which correspond to their stories and experiences.   The word cloud shows the list of values from that discussion.  Which core values in the list resonate with you?   What is missing?  Send a note to pastorbrian@trinitywilmette.org .  Core values are guiding principles of the church.  They describe who we are as a church.  They convey positive elements of our personality and identify what is unique about Trinity Church.  Naming core values helps us to clarify what is important to us.

Dear Friends in Christ, What is the church?  The church may be considered in terms of its location (the people gathered in Jesus’ name in a particular place, as well as every time and place); its nature (sinner and saint); and its redemption (liberation).  According to Everist and Nessan in Transforming Leadership , the church may also be described in terms of its shape. Feminist theologian Letty Russell has described the church “in the round” as a community that seeks to include people on the margins of the church and society in a partnership.  She uses the image of a round table where everyone is seated face-to-face as equals.  A church “in the round” is a household of freedom, a community that embraces God’s welcome for all and works for justice with the oppressed.   In order to do this, the church must make transformative connections.  At the Lord’s Table, we pray: “Make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to a...

What is the church?  I've previously explored the church in terms of its location (the people gathered in Jesus’ name in a particular place, as well as every time and place) and its nature (sinner and saint).  According to Everist and Nessan in Transforming Leadership , the church may also be described in terms of redemption. Easter is the story of redemption.  It combines the Passover celebration of God’s delivering the people from slavery in Egypt and the Paschal celebration of Christ’s victory over sin and death.  In the Easter story, we celebrate Jesus Christ as our redeemer.  One of the great sayings of Easter comes from the lips of Job: “I know that my redeemer liveth” (Job 19:25, KJV).  Before every sermon, I pray in the name of the Lord, our strength and our redeemer (Psalm 19:14, KJV). What does it mean that Christ is our Redeemer?  Well, if you buy Oberweis milk, you have to pay a deposit and then return the empty bottle in ord...

You may know the traditional "Seven Last Words" of Christ.  But Jesus did not finish speaking at the crucifixion.  As the risen Christ, he began speaking again on Easter.  During the season of Easter, we will take up the “Seven Next Words” of Christ.  These sayings come from the resurrection appearances of Jesus: "Who Are You Looking For?" John 20:11-18 "Don’t Be Afraid" Matthew 28:8-10 "What Are You So Concerned About?" Luke 23:13-34 "Peace Be with You" John 20:19-20 "Go Into the World"  Matthew 28:18-20 "Come and Have Breakfast" John 21:1-14 "Wait for the Gift"  Acts 1:1-11 This new Trinity series for April 5 - May 17 is inspired by Rev. Dr. Shane Stanford’s book  The Seven NEXT Words of Christ  (Abingdon Press 2006).  

Why do you believe in creating a welcoming community of compassion and faith?   Why do people need Trinity Church?   What would be missing in your life if Trinity Church did not exist?    Your answer to these questions is the driving motivation for connecting others with Trinity Church.   This winter the Trinity Church Council has been discussing these “WHY” questions in terms of the “Golden Circle,” a model for inspiring others.  According to Simon Sinek’s book Start With Why , the Golden Circle is a series of concentric circles moving from “Why→How→What.”   1.       Why = Your Purpose (what is your motivation, what do you believe) 2.       How = Your Process (concrete steps taken to realize your Why) 3.       What = Your Product (what do you do, the result of your Why) As Sinek says, “People don’t buy what you do, they buy WHY you do it.”  You can w...

Dear Friends in Christ, What is the church?  In terms of location, the church is not just the consecrated site of a church building, but also the people gathered in Jesus’ name in a particular place, as well as every time and place.  According to Everist and Nessan in Transforming Leadership, the church may also be described in terms of its nature as both sinner and saint.  As Martin Luther puts it, we are simul justus et peccator, at the same time sinners in the eyes of God who has justified us by the righteousness of Christ.  You may have heard people object to the church because it is “full of hypocrites.”  They are right, in a sense.  Others can spot the inconsistencies in our faith and life, just as easily as God can.  Hans Küng writes that the church exists not merely to be admired or criticized, but to be believed.  As the people of God, the church is an instrument of God’s goodness, and as such, we are capable of doing ...

Dear Friends in Christ, What is the church?  This is something I’ve been thinking about since I began my doctoral work on congregational leadership, inspired partly by Norma Everist and Craig Nessan who offer “twelve foundations for the church” in Transforming Leadership . One way to answer the question is to identify the location of the church.  Our gothic church building is located at the corner of Lake and Wilmette Avenues in Wilmette, Illinois.  It stands majestically at 42.079224º latitude, -87.704113º longitude, where the ground is 607 feet above sea level.  But the church is far more than a beautiful building in a certain place.  It is also “a community of memory and hope,” remembering Jesus Christ and anticipating the coming of his kingdom.  As such, we have a location that is both local and global.  The church exists in an observable form as real people who meet together at a specific time and place.  Showing up to wors...