peanut butter and fellowship

As unsophisticated and often-goofy as our fellowship is, it seems healthier and more natural to me than what I see in many fellowships back home. It’s like peanut butter – the less-processed stuff is easier to digest, is grainier with occasional lumps, and tastes more like the main ingredient. The more processed stuff (which I happen to like, too) is sweeter but less satisfying, more predictable because it’s from a factory, yet still stomps out hunger pangs (ie – gets the job done).

Nope – I haven’t taken time or mental energy to actually process through this peanut butter analogy…it just popped into mind as I was eating breakfast 2 minutes ago. That said (shh): I think there’s something to this. And perhaps someone beat me to this eureka eons ago.

We’re going through Acts as a fellowship, and I’ve really been enjoying what I can understand of it thus far. I’ve always enjoyed trying to picture what the early church looked like back in the day – and what it would take to see us be more like that now. A few scattered thoughts:

There may be a place for bulletins (hooray that it’s not something even on our radar here), but the amount of paper and energy they use, the time it takes to make them, and the “discussions” into designing and flash-ifying them (“how can we make them seeker-friendly?”)…well, it seems off. Again, I’m not anti-bulletin across the board, but…

And then there are sophisticated transitions. We’ve recently had directors of sorts for the services. And it’s fantastically unpolished and yummy. “Errr, now someone will read a verse. And then we’ll sing. Oh! First, uh…does anyone have any announcements?” I love it :). There aren’t discussions on when to walk up to the front or where to stand or how to transition from prayer to offering to sermon. It just happens without it feeling like people went to seminary to figure out how to plan an ultra-smooth “service.” (“Welcome. I’m the pastor of smooth transitions.”)

And then there is dress. People have out-and-about clothes and wedding clothes. They wear the former to church. It seems so appropriate and comfortable. There are a lot of other cool things: the lack of over-active programming, the presence of a genuine desire to spend time with each other, and (in this city, for the most part) a lack of comparison, competitiveness, and crankiness toward the other local fellowships. There's something special about being a part of a team that says, "We don't have it all - or much - figured out yet. Let's look at Acts - and act like Acts."

So many people talk about fellowship of believers not being based on a formula. Straight up natural peanut butter. It’s home-made, too…meaning it’s not for sale. Yum.